'Claws' to Stream on Twitter after Tonight's TNT Launch

Turner's TNT has announced that the premiere episode of its new drama Claws will stream on Twitter following the series' launch on TNT. Set in a Central Florida nail salon and featuring an ensemble cast headed by Niecy Nash, Claws is slated to premiere Sunday, June 11, at 9 p.m. ET/PT across TNT's platforms. Twitter will then stream an encore of the premiere episode at 10 pm. ET, marking the platform's first ever streaming of a basic cable drama. Fans on Twitter in the United States will be able to access the stream and a curated timeline of show-related Tweets by going to claws.twitter.com, as well as via the @ClawsTNT Twitter handle.

Twitter will also play a key role during TNT's 9 p.m. premiere of Claws, during which Nash and fellow cast members Carrie Preston, Jenn Lyon, Judy Reyes and Karrueche Tran will live Tweet along with the show and engage with fans as the suspense unfolds. They will be Tweeting from New Orleans, where the series is filmed, using #ClawsTNT.

Claws is a midnight-dark, wickedly funny meditation on female badness, starring Niecy Nash, Carrie Preston (The Good Wife), Harold Perrineau (Lost), Jenn Lyon (Justified), Judy Reyes (Scrubs), Karrueche Tran (The Bay), Jason Antoon (Famous in Love), Kevin Rankin (Friday Night Lights), Jack Kesy (The Strain) and Dean Norris (Breaking Bad).

Claws follows the rise of five diverse and treacherous manicurists working at the Nail Artisan of Manatee County salon, where there is a lot more going on than silk wraps and pedicures. At the center is salon owner Desna (Niecy Nash), who lives with and cares for her mentally ill twin brother, Dean (Harold Perrineau). Desna's staff includes best friend Jennifer (Jenn Lyon), a tenuously sober ex-party girl raising two children from previous relationships; Quiet Ann (Judy Reyes), Desna's enigmatic driver who also provides security for the salon; Polly (Carrie Preston), a mild-mannered preppy who recently served time in prison for identity theft; and Virginia (Karrueche Tran), who makes no effort to hide her boredom and impatience with her job.

Adding chaos to the Nail Artisan mix is Roller (Jack Kesy), a gangstered-out redneck who runs a barely legal pain clinic and uses Desna's nail salon to launder their obscene profits; Bryce (Kevin Rankin), Jennifer's husband who is also newly sober and trying to stay legit by working as an abundance coach; Dr. Ken Brickman (Jason Antoon), a bona fide doctor at a decidedly un-bona fide drug clinic; and Uncle Daddy (Dean Norris), a dangerous Dixie Mafia crime boss who is deeply Catholic and actively bisexual.



Claws is executive-produced by Rashida Jones, Will McCormack, Janine Sherman Barrois, who also serves as showrunner, and director Howard Deutch. Creator and co-executive producer Eliot Laurence wrote the pilot, which was directed by Nicole Kassell. Claws is produced by Jones and McCormack's Le Train Train, in association with Warner Horizon Television and Turner's Studio T.

Twitter's encore of Claws is its second such collaboration with a Turner network. On April 29, Twitter streamed an encore of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee's "Not the White House Correspondents' Dinner" following the one-hour comedy special's premiere on Turner's TBS.

"As we saw with our Full Frontal with Samantha Bee special in April, a streaming encore on Twitter has the power to reach new audiences and catch the attention of viewers who might not otherwise have sampled our show," said Michael Engleman, executive vice president of entertainment marketing and brand innovation. "By giving viewers the opportunity to watch the premiere episode of Claws on Twitter, we're helping this terrific series build a strong fan base across the entirety of the season, and we're establishing a meaningful connection with those fans through social media engagement."

"We are excited to collaborate again with Turner to help them reach new audiences on Twitter," said Anthony Noto, Twitter COO. "Fans will be able to watch the video of the highly anticipated premiere of Claws and Tweet along with viewers and the cast all on the same platform."

Viewers who miss out on the TNT premiere of Claws or its Twitter encore will be able to watch the series' opening episode through tntdrama.com, TNT On Demand and the TNT mobile app, as well as through primetime encores airing throughout the week on TNT.