‘Masters Of Sex’ And ‘Ray Donovan’ Season 3 Premieres Released Early; Watch Online And On TV Right Now

It’s like Christmas in July for “Masters of Sex” and “Ray Donovan” fans. Both dramas have been on hiatus since September, but Showtime released both Season 3 premieres on Thursday, 10 days before their scheduled debut. Even viewers without Showtime accounts can watch the shows for free in a variety of ways.

The seemingly easiest way, which we’ve embedded below, is to watch through YouTube. However, those with Showtime Anytime accounts can also watch using the service on their computer, tablet or smartphone. Fans with iTunes can download the episodes for free.

Those who prefer watching their TV shows on an actual television don’t have to wait until July 12 either, according to a press release. The “Masters of Sex” Season 3 premiere and the “Ray Donovan” Season 3 premiere are available on select On Demand services. They’re also available on Chromecast, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Apple TV. Samsung, LG and Panasonic Smart TVs have the episodes available on the Showtime Preview app as well.

“Masters of Sex” is a scripted historical drama that follows the lives of real-life sex researchers Bill Masters (Michael Sheen) and Virginia Johnson (Lizzy Caplan), and fans have been dying to see what happens to the duo after their personal lives started to fall apart at the end of last season. Despite Virginia’s custody battle and Bill’s wife Libby (Caitlin Fitzgerald) having an affair, it looked like the three were getting quite cozy in the scandalous promo for the premiere.

Watch “Masters of Sex” Season 3, episode 1 below:

Crime drama “Ray Donovan” will introduce plenty of new characters in Season 3. At the end of last season, Ray (Live Schreiber) cut off all ties to Ezra (Elliott Gould) after he ordered the death of a reporter. The premiere picks up a few months later and shows Ray working for the Finney family, whose son was just kidnapped. The Finneys will include plenty of guest stars, including Katie Holmes.

Watch “Ray Donovan” Season 3, episode 1 below:

Viewers should note that while the episodes above are posted in full, they’re censored. Swear words are bleeped and nudity isn’t shown to keep the ratings to TV-14 and meet YouTube’s standards.

While the early -- and free -- release will delight many fans, it's probably only happening for the premiere episodes. It's likely being used as a way to promote the network. If they get viewers who don't have Showtime hooked on either series, they'll be more inclined to pay for a Showtime account. After a nine-month hiatus, fans of both shows will probably feel that any reason is a good reason to release the episodes early.