From documentaries about JRK Jr. and The Biggest Loser to a new Alien series, we round up our top 10 shows to watch this week
1. American Prince: JFK Jr. – Saturday, August 9, CNN | Series Premiere
Known as “John-John” during his father’s tragically short tenure as America’s 35th president, John F. Kennedy, Jr. went on to make his own mark on the public before his life was also cut short. This three-part series traces his early years marked by his father’s assassination and the societal and familial pressures to carry the Kennedy torch, through his decision to create George, a new kind of political magazine within the rapidly evolving media landscape of the 1990s. American Prince also reveals the love story he shared with Carolyn Bessette, which was relentlessly targeted by the tabloids.
2. Irish Blood – Monday, August 11, Acorn TV | Series Premiere
Still best known for transcendent teen comedy Clueless, Alicia Silverstone has been quietly showing off her range of late in gritty dramas like The Lodge and The Killing of a Sacred Deer. This new series — coming to Acorn on Monday with a two-part premiere — continues that trend, casting the ’90s It girl as Fiona, an American lawyer whose take-no-prisoners approach is fuelled, in no small part, by unresolved issues with her deadbeat Irish father (Jason O’Mara). But when she suddenly gets a message from not-so-dear old dad, Fiona heads to Ireland, where she learns “the story of abandonment that has shaped her entire life was a lie — a lie intended to protect her and her mother from her father’s shady business dealings.” And so, “Fiona resolves to uncover the full truth about her father, and reconnect with the parent she only thought she knew.” Click here to watch trailer.
3. Alien: Earth – Tuesday, August 12, FX Canada & Disney+ | Series Premiere
Reflecting on Hollywood’s most iconic franchises, Alien stands apart for being home to an eclectic array of directors, each of whom brought their own distinct sensibility to the film they helmed. Such legends as Ridley Scott, James Cameron and David Fincher have all made their mark. Now, the baton is passed to another unmistakable auteur — Noah Hawley, creator of FX’s Fargo.
With this eight-part series, Hawley takes the acid-blooded Xenomorphs two places they’ve never been — the small screen and the Planet Earth.
A prequel set in the year 2120, two years before Scott’s original film, we open to find a ship packed with extraterrestrial monstrosities crash-landing on our little blue marble. This is in an age when humanity has redefined what it means to be human via the invention of androids, cyborgs and AI; avid fans know that these “synthetics” (previously played by the likes of Ian Holm and Michael Fassbender) have tended to be the most intriguing members of their respective casts. So, we’re happy to report that artificial beings are front-and-centre in this new ensemble, led by Sugar alum Sydney Chandler (daughter of Friday Night Lights’ Kyle Chandler) and Justified’s Timothy Olyphant (pictured above).
Explaining his approach in a chat with The AV Club, creator Hawley mused: “My take on it is . . . if we take the ‘creatures’ out of Alien: Earth, is it a show? Is it a drama? Are there characters you’re invested in? If you build a great drama, and then add the monsters into it, now you’ve elevated it. If all you have is monsters, you’d better have 400 minutes of the most exciting creature stories ever told. But if it works dramatically, the creatures can be a tool in exploring the larger themes of the show, as well as adding horror, action and all those elements.” Click here to watch trailer.
4. Truck Dynasty – Tuesday, August 12, Discovery | Series Premiere
As one Property Brothers-related project wraps for the season, yet another debuts. Though, with this new series, the B.C. twins are mostly behind the camera as exec producers — and it’s not homes being spruced up, but automobiles.
Here, we follow Joe and Ashley Ghattas of Florida’s Apocalypse Manufacturing. Along with their kooky in-laws, this couple specializes in custom builds for “hardcore enthusiasts, world-famous rappers, sports superstars and elite supermodels.” Some of the more eye-catching names to appear in this first season include NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, who’s in the market for a super-truck with superhero branding, and Food Network icon Guy Fieri, for whom Joe crafts an Apocalypse Hellfire behemoth with a pull-out mobile kitchen.
“From a high-water emergency response vehicle built for fire departments to traverse downed palm trees to a ‘Boat Truck’ — an amphibious Jeep that cruises the highway and dives straight into the water — Truck Dynasty showcases next-level creations built to conquer land, water and everything in between,” the press release teases, furthermore explaining that: “Joe is on the brink of breaking through the fiercely competitive marketplace to establish an American auto brand in a category all its own.”
5. Chef Grudge Match – Tuesday, August 12, Food | Series Premiere
Every culinary competition tends to get at least a little personal by the season’s end — as contestants square off over a big cash prize, while their even bigger personalities start to clash.
This all-new series turns up the heat with a novel little twist. Each week, the chefs in question have pre-existing beef (so to speak) that gets settled in a one-on-one “grudge match.” The winner walks away with both $10,000 and, just to add a little salt to the wounded pride, their opponent’s most treasured knife. Every episode brings us two such battles, which will be judged by celeb chef Jet Tila (of Chopped and Cutthroat Kitchen fame) and hosted by boxing great Laila Ali (daughter of the late Muhammad Ali).
The undefeated pugilist teased in a release: “I’m thrilled to be joining the Food Network family. As someone who’s always been passionate about both competition and delicious food, Chef Grudge Match is the perfect fit. From the ring to the kitchen, I’ve never shied away from a challenge — and now I get to have fun while bringing that same intensity to a show where culinary rivalries are settled once and for all!”
The series opens Tuesday as recurring Food Network personality Gabriele Bertaccini takes on his former protégé Tyler Romine, whose decision to quit Gabe’s catering business with only three days’ notice sparked a 15-year feud. Later, Alex vs. America alum Taylor Frankel looks to settle things with her former sous chef Maria Busato — who not only left, but opened a rival eatery in the very same small town.
Said Food executive Betsy Ayala: “Chef Grudge Match brings these grievances to a head in front of a studio audience, with all the energy of a live boxing match, and Laila Ali is the perfect ringmaster to oversee these battles for ultimate bragging rights.”
6. Fixed – Wednesday, August 13, Netflix
One more dose of animated absurdity that’s definitely not for kids comes from Genndy Tartakovsky, writer and animator of cult-hit series like Dexter’s Laboratory and Samurai Jack.
This Netflix original film stars Pitch Perfect’s Adam DeVine as Bull, a rambunctious canine who learns his owners plan to neuter him. Looking to send his manhood off with a (literal) bang, he recruits pooches from around the neighbourhood for an adventure that will hopefully culminate in Bull being able to let the dog next door (voiced by Agatha All Along’s Kathryn Hahn) know how he feels about her before it’s too late.
Teasing the movie during a chat with Tudum, Tartakovsky said: “Bull is every man. He is lovable, funny, witty and confident. Then at the same time, he is also nervous, shy, neurotic and anxious. A complete human, as a dog. His journey is quite simple. He believes that his powers come from his dangly bits, but he learns that it is what is inside that is important.”
The filmmaker furthermore mused: “I think it started out as an R-rated Lady and the Tramp — then as we got into it, it naturally became more cartoony and specific to itself.”
Rounding out the impressive voice cast are Luther’s Idris Elba and SNL alums Bobby Moynihan, Beck Bennett and Fred Armisen. Click here to watch trailer.
7. Sausage Party: Foodtopia – Wednesday, August 13, Prime Video | Season Premiere
Get ready to binge a second helping of this twisted cartoon. As the talking wieners, buns and condiments (voiced by Seth Rogen, Will Forte and friends) try to start over in a land where they need not worry about getting eaten alive, a dark secret “threatens the entirety of sentient food society.” Click here to watch trailer.
8. Limitless: Live Better Now – Friday, August 15, Disney+ | Season Premiere
A few years back, Chris Hemsworth offered himself up as a guinea pig in Limitless, a docuseries that found the movie star exploring the latest research in extending the human lifespan. Now, he returns with a bold new mission: discovering how we can all live better — starting today. In Limitless: Live Better Now, he dives into three high-stakes challenges that promise real, immediate ways to sharpen our minds and strengthen our bodies by confronting pain, fear and cognitive decline.
Filmed across six countries over two years, Hemsworth tests his limits by drawing from cutting-edge science and the wisdom of elders to push himself like never before. This includes learning to play the drums for a live performance with Ed Sheeran in front of 70,000 fans, scaling a dizzying 600-foot climbing wall in the Swiss Alps, and taking part in South Korean Special Forces training, enduring such crucibles as electrocution and pepper spray.
“Making this series has been a life-changing journey,” says Hemsworth. “I’ve discovered so much about my own health, resilience and what it really means to live well. I hope this next chapter inspires audiences to step outside their comfort zones and embrace challenges, because the impact it’s had on my life has been truly profound.” Click here to watch trailer.
9. The Rainmaker – Friday, August 15, Crave (Stream) | Series Premiere
Based on the John Grisham novel (previously adapted by Francis Ford Coppola in 1997), this new series follows a young lawyer (Milo Callaghan) who is fired by his elite firm and goes to work for an ambulance chaser (Lana Parrilla) — only to wind up battling his old boss (John Slattery) in a wrongful death suit.
10. Fit for TV: The Reality of The Biggest Loser – Friday, August 15, Netflix
Making its debut in 2004, NBC’s The Biggest Loser proved to be a ratings juggernaut that ran for 18 hit seasons, following morbidly obese contestants as they embarked on an extreme diet-and-exercise regime in order to win a US$250,000 prize awarded to the person who shed the most weight during the course of a season.
This three-part docuseries examines the dark side of the show, with former contestants, trainers and producers spilling the beans about some of The Biggest Loser’s shadier aspects. “We were not looking for people who were overweight and happy. We were looking for people who were overweight and unhappy,” says producer J.D. Roth of the casting process. “People like making fun of fat people,” season seven contestant Joelle Gwynn points out, while trainer Bob Harper adds, “And producers love that s***. They were like, ‘We want them to puke. We want the madness of it all.’ ” Click here to watch trailer.