HBO Orders Another Season Of 'Real Time With Bill Maher'

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UPDATED: Ahead of its Friday premiere, the talk show is confirmed to return for a 13th season in 2015.

HBO is staying in the Bill Maher business. The talk show host, who will be joined on the cable network's schedule by a new effort from John Oliver, has reupped for a 13th season of his series to air in 2015.

Real Time With Bill Maher, which returns to the schedule on Jan. 17, will again run for 35 episodes over the course of the year -- which will coincide with the beginnings of the debate cycle leading up to the 2016 presidential election.

"Bill Maher has been a treasured member of the HBO family since the late '80s, and his irreverent wit and fearless insights make him the perfect observer for these unpredictable times," said HBO programming president Michael Lombardo. "I'm delighted that we can continue to offer an uncensored forum for his original and thoughtful humor."

Maher had his own snarky take on the renewal: "It's a pleasure to be returning for a 13th season on HBO. It's something you rarely see in Hollywood: an on-again, on-again relationship."

Over a decade into its run, Real Time continues to be a strong performer for HBO on Friday nights. With time-shifting, OnDemand and HBO Go views, the series most recently averaged a gross 4.1 million viewers per episode.

Maher serves as executive producer alongside Scott Carter, Sheila Griffiths, Marc Gurvitz, Brad Grey and Billy Martin. Dean E. Johnsen produces, with Paul Casey as director.