Series renewed for third season; final episodes to Sundays

HBO has renewed "Big Love" for a third season -- one for each of polygamist Bill Henrickson's wives.

The pickup will allow the show to begin work on scripts for the next season in August, with filming scheduled for fall. The quick turnaround would assure that the season was completed in advance of a potential actors' strike next summer, Variety reports.

As with the show's first two seasons, year three will consist of 12 episodes. "Big Love" follows the lives of Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton) and his polygamous family, which includes three wives (Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ginnifer Goodwin and Chloe Sevigny), their children and a host of other relatives.

The current season is averaging about 2 million viewers a week for the show's initial Monday-night airing, down from about 4 million last year -- when it benefited from having "The Sopranos" as a lead-in. HBO estimates, however, that the cumulative weekly audience for "Big Love," which includes multiple airings and DVR and on-demand viewing, is about 6 million people.

HBO has also tweaked the schedule for the final episodes of the season. Following the conclusion of "John From Cincinnati" on Aug. 12, "Big Love" will move into the 9 p.m. Sunday spot for its last two episodes. The season finale is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 26.