THE HOLIDAYS COME EARLY FOR "NASHVILLE" FANS AS CMT RELEASES TRAILER AND ANNOUNCES PLANS TO SNEAK FIRST HOUR OF TWO-HOUR PREMIERE ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15 AT 9PM ET/PT

New Season Debuts January 5 at 9pm ET/PT

NASHVILLE - December 1, 2016 - Nashies set your DVRs now! As an early holiday gift for the fans, CMT today announced plans to sneak the first hour of the two-hour season premiere of "Nashville" on Thursday, December 15 at 9pm ET/PT. Additionally, CMT just dropped the trailer for the new season. Produced by Lionsgate, ABC Studios and Opry Entertainment, the two-hour season premiere of "Nashville" will debut on Thursday, January 5 at 9pm ET/PT.

The season begins with Rayna and Deacon facing a new normal with Maddie now back home and Highway 65 struggling financially. The shocking news about Juliette creates a wave of emotions throughout Nashville and sets Rayna off on a journey of discovery.

"Nashville" is set against the backdrop of the city's music scene and follows Rayna Jaymes and Juliette Barnes. Both women face personal and professional challenges as they navigate their paths as artists and individuals. Surrounding them and often complicating their lives are their family, friends and, in some cases, lovers, as well as the up-and-coming performers and songwriters trying to get ahead in the business. Music City can mean so many things to different people. In "Nashville," musicians and songwriters are at the heart of the storm driven by their own ambitions. Some are fueled by their creativity and passion for fame. Others struggle to cope with the pressures of success and are doing everything in their power to stay on top.

"Nashville" stars Connie Britton as Rayna Jaymes, Hayden Panettiere as Juliette Barnes, Clare Bowen as Scarlett O'Connor, Chris Carmack as Will Lexington, Charles Esten as Deacon Claybourne, Jonathan Jackson as Avery Barkley, Sam Palladio as Gunnar Scott, Maisy Stella as Daphne Conrad and Lennon Stella as Maddie Conrad. In addition, the upcoming season will feature Joseph David-Jones as Clay, Rhiannon Giddens as Hallie Jordan, Jen Richards as Allyson Del Lago, and Cameron Scoggins as Zach Welles in recurring roles.

Produced by Lionsgate, ABC Studios and Opry Entertainment, production is currently underway in Nashville. The series is executive produced by Marshall Herskovitz and Ed Zwick (the creators of "Thirtysomething"), Steve Buchanan and Callie Khouri. Jayson Dinsmore and Morgan Selzer executive produce for CMT.

The series airs in 225 territories worldwide. Since its debut, the show has inspired 10 soundtracks, including a Christmas album, which have collectively sold more than one million album units and over 5 million single-track downloads to date. It has also been nominated for multiple Emmy, Golden Globe and Critics Choice awards.

About CMT

CMT, a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is the leading television and digital authority on country music and entertainment, reaching more than 92 million homes in the U.S. CMT, CMT.com and CMT Radio offer an unparalleled mix of music, news, live concerts and series and are the top resource for country music on demand. The network's digital platforms include the 24-hour music channel, CMT Pure Country, CMT Mobile and CMT VOD.

About Lionsgate

Lionsgate is a premier next generation global content leader with a diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, home entertainment, international distribution and sales, branded channel platforms, interactive ventures and games, and location-based entertainment. The Company has nearly 80 television shows on 40 different networks spanning its primetime production, distribution and syndication businesses. These include the ground-breaking hit series Orange is the New Black, the fan favorite drama series Nashville, the syndication success The Wendy Williams Show, the hit drama series The Royals, the Golden Globe-nominated dramedy Casual and the breakout success Greenleaf.

The Company's feature film business spans eight labels and includes the blockbuster Hunger Games franchise, the Now You See Me and John Wick series, Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween, the critically-acclaimed Hacksaw Ridge, Nerve, CBS Films/Lionsgate's Hell or High Water, Sicario, Roadside Attractions' Love & Mercy and Mr. Holmes, Codeblack Films' Addicted and breakout concert film Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain and Pantelion Films' Instructions Not Included, the highest-grossing Spanish-language film ever released in the U.S.

Lionsgate's home entertainment business is an industry leader in box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rates. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of approximately 16,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important source of recurring revenue and serves as a foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate and Summit brands remain synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world. www.lionsgate.com

About ABC Studios

ABC Studios is a leader in the development, production and strategic distribution of entertainment content across broadcast, cable and on demand platforms. The studio is the key content provider for the ABC Entertainment Group, having produced multiple seasons of hit series, including current shows "American Crime," "black-ish," "Quantico," "Grey's Anatomy," "How to Get Away with Murder," "The Real O'Neals," "Marvel's Agents of "S.H.I.E.L.D.," "Mistresses," "Once Upon a Time," "Scandal" and "Secrets and Lies" for ABC; "Criminal Minds," Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders" and "Code Black" for CBS and "Devious Maids" for Lifetime.

About Opry Entertainment

Opry Entertainment(r), a division of Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE: RHP), is a producer of multi-media entertainment experiences with primary interests in location-based entertainment and television and stage production. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, its core business segments include the world-famous Grand Ole Opry(r), the historic Ryman Auditorium(r), and legendary radio station 650 AM-WSM.