How to Watch Showtime Outside the US in 2026 (Paramount+ Premium and SkyShowtime)
Showtime the streaming service is gone. Its shows are not. In the US they’re part of Paramount+ Premium, and abroad they sit on Paramount+, on SkyShowtime in much of Europe, or on a local service, depending on the country. So the first question isn’t how to “unblock” Showtime, but which service carries it where you are.
- Does Showtime still exist? As a brand and a TV channel, yes. The Showtime app closed on April 30, 2024, and its library is in Paramount+ Premium: $13.99 a month or $139.99 a year in the US, with no free trial.
- Outside the US: in the other Paramount+ countries (UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy and Latin America), new Showtime series stream on Paramount+. In 22 European countries, including Spain, the Netherlands, Poland and the Nordics, they’re on SkyShowtime. Country map
- Travelling with a US subscription: Paramount+’s US terms say the service won’t work outside the US, and they forbid using a VPN.
- Travelling within the EU: if you live in the EU or EEA, you keep your home catalogue in other EU/EEA countries.
- SkyShowtime isn’t Showtime: it’s a separate European service from Comcast and Paramount, and its owners are reviewing its future.
What Happened to Showtime
Showtime went from its own app to a tier of Paramount+ in two years:
- June 27, 2023: “Paramount+ with Showtime” launches as the top Paramount+ plan (Paramount).
- January 8, 2024: the Showtime TV channel is renamed Paramount+ with Showtime (BGR).
- April 30, 2024: the standalone Showtime streaming app shuts down (TheWrap).
- June 23, 2025: the streaming plan becomes Paramount+ Premium. The TV channel keeps the Paramount+ with Showtime name (TheWrap).
In the US, Paramount+ Premium costs $13.99 a month or $139.99 a year since the January 2026 price rise, and Paramount+ no longer offers a free trial on its own site. Premium has all Showtime originals and movies, without ads except on live TV. The cheaper Essential plan ($8.99 a month, with ads) has only “select” Showtime series, and new seasons such as Dexter: Resurrection season 2 are Premium-only.
Already pay for Hulu, DIRECTV or YouTube TV? You can add Showtime there instead: as a $13.99 add-on to a Hulu plan (with a 7-day trial for new subscribers), as a premium channel on DIRECTV ($6.99 a month for three months, then $13.99), or on YouTube TV in a $29.99 bundle with HBO Max and Starz. Showtime’s old help site still lists 2023 prices; ignore them.
Showtime now belongs to Skydance, the company formed when Paramount merged with Skydance in August 2025 and then bought Warner Bros. Discovery in October 2026. Skydance says its streaming services “will unify into a single service over time” (press release), so the plans described here may change again.
Where Showtime Shows Stream Outside the US
Outside the US there’s no Showtime service to sign up for. Paramount places its shows on whichever service it runs or partners with in each country, so where you can watch Dexter: Resurrection depends on where you live:
Two things the map doesn’t show. Older Showtime series such as Homeland usually aren’t on Paramount+ abroad: JustWatch lists Homeland on Netflix or Disney+ in every country we checked. And in Canada, Showtime’s long-time partner Crave still has some titles, Yellowjackets among them, while Dexter: Resurrection and The Agency are on Paramount+.
Paramount+ abroad is its own service with local plans and prices, and its 7-day free trial is only offered in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, the UK and Ireland (Paramount+ help).
SkyShowtime: Showtime Shows in 22 European Countries
SkyShowtime is a separate streaming service, run by a joint venture of Comcast (the owner of Sky) and Paramount. It launched in 2022 and mixes Showtime and Paramount+ originals with Sky and Peacock titles. It’s available in the 22 countries listed in the map above (SkyShowtime), and not in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy or France, where Paramount+ carries the same shows.
Prices depend on the country. In Spain, Standard costs €8.99 a month and Premium €13.99 (the plan with ads €5.99 since February 2026, according to El Grupo Informático). In the Netherlands it’s €9.99 and €13.99 a month, or €79.99 and €109.99 a year; in Poland 34.99 zł and 49.99 zł a month. Longer commitments are cheaper per month.
Before you pay for a year, know that SkyShowtime’s future is open. In September 2026 its board started a review of strategic options that “includes the possibility of a wind-down” (C21). No decision had been announced by November 2, 2026, and the service keeps running.
SkyShowtime only sells subscriptions in its 22 countries, and its help pages say it works only inside the EU/EEA: in another EU/EEA country for up to 180 days (SkyShowtime help), and not at all elsewhere. If you’re in the UK or Germany and looking for SkyShowtime’s Showtime shows, they’re on Paramount+ there.
Travelling With a Paramount+ or SkyShowtime Subscription
US subscribers. Paramount+’s US terms of use (September 15, 2026) are blunt: “You will not be able to access the Service when travelling outside of the Territory”, which means the 50 states, DC and the US territories. Downloads “may not be available to play outside the Territory” either, so downloading a season before the flight isn’t a plan you can count on.
Subscribers in other Paramount+ countries. When you travel, you get the Paramount+ service of the country you’re visiting, where there is one, at no extra cost and with that country’s catalogue. The US is excluded: a UK or Canadian subscription doesn’t open the US service (Paramount+ help).
EU and EEA residents. You have the strongest position. EU Regulation 2017/1128 obliges paid streaming services to let subscribers who are “temporarily present” in another member state use the service as at home, “including by providing access to the same content”, without extra charges. Paramount+ confirms this for EEA residents, and SkyShowtime too, with its 180-day limit; the regulation itself names no number of days. It covers trips, not a move: it doesn’t let you subscribe to another country’s catalogue. UK residents lost this right when the UK revoked the regulation at the end of 2020.
Using a VPN With Paramount+: What to Know
Price from: $4.99/mo
Available on:
pros
Cons
For US subscribers abroad, a VPN connected to a US server is the only way to reach the US service, and it’s what most “Showtime VPN” guides recommend. Know what you’re agreeing to first. Paramount+’s terms say you won’t “access the Service or parts of the Service and/or sign up to your Subscription using a virtual private network (“VPN”) or otherwise provide fictitious information or conceal your identity or location, including in an attempt to circumvent … geographic Content restrictions”. The international terms have the same rule. Paramount+ doesn’t say how it detects VPNs.
Don’t expect a free VPN to do it. Proton VPN, one of the better free services, keeps streaming for its paid plans (Proton VPN).
If you go ahead anyway, ExpressVPN is the one we’d pick. It has servers in all 50 US states and 113 countries, apps for computers, phones, Fire TV and Apple TV, and an independently audited no-logs policy. The Basic plan costs $74.85 for the first 15 months ($4.99 a month), or $83.72 for the first 28 months ($2.99 a month) when the two-year plan is shown; both renew at $99.95 a year, with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Our ExpressVPN review has the details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Some people found answers to these questions helpful
Does Showtime still exist?
As a brand and a TV channel (Paramount+ with Showtime), yes. The Showtime streaming app closed on April 30, 2024, and its shows now stream on Paramount+ Premium in the US.
Can I watch Showtime outside the US?
Not through the US service. Abroad, Showtime series are on Paramount+ in its other countries (UK, Canada, Australia, much of Western Europe and Latin America), on SkyShowtime in 22 European countries, and on local services elsewhere.
Is SkyShowtime the same as Showtime?
No. SkyShowtime is a separate European streaming service from Comcast and Paramount. It carries Showtime shows, sells subscriptions only in 22 countries and works only inside the EU/EEA.
Does my US Paramount+ subscription work abroad?
No. Paramount+'s US terms say you can't access the service outside the US, and downloads may not play abroad either.
Can I use Paramount+ or SkyShowtime on holiday in another EU country?
Yes, if you live in the EU or EEA. EU rules let you use your home subscription, with the same content, while you're temporarily in another member state. SkyShowtime limits this to 180 days.
How much does Paramount+ Premium cost?
$13.99 a month or $139.99 a year in the US since January 2026, with no free trial on Paramount+'s own site. Essential costs $8.99 a month with ads and has only select Showtime series.
Is it legal to use a VPN with Paramount+?
Using a VPN is legal in the US and most of Europe. Using one to reach Paramount+ from another country breaks Paramount+'s terms of use, which you accept when you subscribe.