From Jimmy Fallon’s new holiday special to SNL’s Colin Jost hosting Pop Culture Jeopardy!, we round up our top 10 shows to watch this week
1. Second Chance Stage – Saturday, November 30, Magnolia | Series Premiere
Taking place in Kansas City, this heartwarming talent competition offers contestants — who have put their dreams on hold for years or even decades — a shot at their big break. With performances ranging from singing and dancing to standup comedy, one winner will take home a US$100,000 cash prize. Meanwhile, talent scouts, agents and producers will be in the audience, looking to discover the next big star. Host Emmanuel Acho is joined by a judging panel that includes country music great Martina McBride, actor Taye Diggs and Saturday Night Live star (and Kansas City native) Heidi Gardner.
2. Superman & Lois – Monday, December 2, CTV Sci-Fi & KTLA | Series Finale
The last crusaders in The CW’s once-ubiquitous Arrow-verse take their final bow. After a fourth season of shocking deaths and inevitable resurrections, Clark, Lois and their fam make one last stand against the ever-unpredictable Lex Luthor.
3. Star Wars: Skeleton Crew – Tuesday, December 3, Disney+ | Series Premiere
Disney+ expands its small-screen Star Wars universe yet again with a series that’s giving off some serious Goonies vibes.
The somewhat-cryptic synopsis describes it as centring around four kids who make a mysterious discovery on their safe home planet that rockets them off on an outer-space adventure, followed by a perilous quest to get back home. Much as the show may be focused on the youngsters, the true headliner is Jude Law, as an outer-space swashbuckler. As he told StarWars.com: “I first discovered Star Wars when the first film was released in the cinemas in London where I was growing up. And I remember it just blowing my tiny mind . . . To be invited to be a part of this universe was a true thrill. There’s something to be said for the play-acting as a child having some sort of responsibility for becoming an actor and assuming roles. Running around wanting to be space pirates or saviours in that world was a leap of the imagination, which is really at the heart of what my job is.”
Co-creating the show is Jon Watts, director of another larger-than-life coming-of-age saga: the Tom Holland Spider-Man flicks. Click here to watch trailer.
4. Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Spectacular – Wednesday, December 4, NBC
Long before taking over The Tonight Show, dating all the way back to his days on Saturday Night Live, Jimmy Fallon has always been a musically inclined comedian. (His Neil Young impression is among the best ever committed to film.)
On Wednesday, Fallon shows off his knack for hilarity and melody in equal measure. Following the November 1 release of his Holiday Seasoning musical comedy album, this new yuletide special features Fallon and the myriad celebrities who contributed to that record putting on a primetime concert for viewers, featuring a wide array of all-original songs. Those contributors include: Dolly Parton, Cara Delevingne, Justin Timberlake, Jonas Brothers, LL COOL J, Meghan Trainor, J.B. Smoove, Fallon’s own house band The Roots and the one and only “Weird Al” Yankovic.
Per NBC, the set list will feature a “roller-disco jam” with the Jonas Brothers, a riff on Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with The Roots, a New Year’s Eve polka party with Yankovic and a tune celebrating the indelible charm of Hallmark movies with Delevingne. Previewing that last one on a recent episode of The Tonight Show, Fallon teased: “We’re in love. We’re in a Hallmark movie. I work at a hardware store. She’s out of my league, she’s a princess. She’s coming to the town to save my hardware store. And then, at the end of the song, she reaches for a knife, and I realize that we’re not in a Hallmark movie — we’re in a Lifetime movie. Same plot, just a little violence at the end.”
As NBC’s executive VP of live events and specials Jen Neal pledged in a media release: “Bringing his new album Holiday Seasoning to life in such a unique way is sure to bring joy to millions all across the country.”
5. That Christmas – Wednesday, December 4, Netflix
The screenwriter behind Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill and, perhaps most iconically of all, Love Actually brings us another holiday yarn. But here, Richard Curtis isn’t exploring the bittersweet chaos of looking for love. Rather, this film is a cartoon adaptation of Curtis’ series of heartwarming-yet-clever children’s books.
Sporting an anthology structure, the piece tells an array of stories about the highs and lows of the snowy season. “I hope it’s going to be a film that makes people happy — perhaps more than once,” Curtis said in an interview with Tudum. “I hope it’ll remind people of the joy and complexity of Christmas, and some of the joys and comedy and heartbreak of childhood. And then there’s a very special thing for me, that the film takes place in a town very much like my own in Suffolk. I hope they’ll love the sense of the place — and go away with a new, delightful, simple English world in their heads.”
Added the pic’s director, Simon Otto: “This movie tells the story of a troubled Christmas, forcing a group of kids and parents to accept that you can’t always plan life. Life is chaotic, relationships are messy and traditions sometimes must be re-evaluated.”
The sterling voice cast includes Doctor Who’s Jodie Whittaker and Love Actually’s Bill Nighy — plus, Succession alum Brian Cox as Santa!
6. Pop Culture Jeopardy! – Wednesday, December 4, Prime Video | Series Premiere
One of the most enduring, iconic, brain-teasing game shows in television history is getting another spinoff.
The first version of the show ever to debut on a streamer, Prime Video’s Pop Culture Jeopardy! has the same format as the classic “answer in the form of a question” quiz we’ve all enjoyed for decades — except with nine contestants instead of three. Plus, the categories are, as the title suggests, a little less highfalutin. Subjects include film, TV, stage, music and sports.
Hosting it all is Saturday Night Live “Weekend Update” anchor Colin Jost — a fitting choice given the numerous SNL sketches that have mined their yuks from parodies of Jeopardy! over the years.
Teasing the show on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast (via TV Insider), producer Sarah Whitcomb Foss mused on how exactly Jost, as emcee, changes the game.
“The way he can intersperse comedy within the Jeopardy! format is something like I have never seen before,” she explained. “And I found myself laughing at the judges’ table many, many times. That was really, really fun. He’s an all-around nice guy.”
She furthermore enthused: “And with not three contestants, but nine! Nine active buzzers. Ken [Jennings, Jeopardy! host] always talks about what it’s like to be the traffic cop of Jeopardy!. He’s [Jost] gotta be a traffic cop to not three but nine contestants.”
Further teasing what fans are in for, Sony Pictures Television president of game shows Suzanne Prete said in a release: “Pop Culture Jeopardy! is going to be a nail-biter for game show enthusiasts who can expect to see teams competing at the highest level of Jeopardy! combined with a fresh twist of pop culture Olympics for the mind . . . It’s going to be a must-watch for longtime viewers and new fans alike.” Click here to watch trailer.
7. Churchill at War – Wednesday, December 4, Netflix | Series Premiere
Over the course of four episodes, this Netflix docuseries explores the pivotal role that Winston Churchill played in the Second World War. Utilizing restored footage — including audio and film of Churchill himself — Churchill at War uses his own words to examine the formative events that made him an ideal leader for the era, delving into his wartime strategy and the legacy that he left behind. Some top historians also weigh in, sharing revealing anecdotes about Churchill’s calm determination in the face of the Blitz, as Adolf Hitler attempted to bomb the British people into submission — such as the time Churchill refused to enter a bomb shelter, and instead watched from a rooftop as London exploded around him.
8. Black Doves – Thursday, December 5, Netflix | Series Premiere
A British espionage drama that’s part playful spy romp, part poignant character study stars Keira Knightley as Helen — the devoted housewife of a prominent U.K. politician (Broadchurch’s Andrew Buchan) and mother of two adorable children. Or, at least, that’s what the world sees. In reality, Helen is a deep-cover operative, working for an independent intelligence-gathering agency that has a vested interest in keeping its finger on the pulse of the comings and goings at Whitehall.
Alas, her carefully coiffed public persona is threatened by a slew of murders. One of the victims is a man (Andrew Koji) that Helen had been sleeping with — and unlike the relationship with her husband, this particular dangerous liaison was a case of true love.
On the hunt for both answers and revenge, our heroine stumbles across a wide-ranging plot that involves the death of a foreign ambassador, London’s criminal underworld and the seedy machinations of multiple world superpowers. She also uncovers some uncomfortable truths about the man she loved and thought she knew.
Happy Valley and Last Tango in Halifax alum Sarah Lancashire plays Helen’s savvy, inscrutable handler, Reed. Naturally concerned about how this whole debacle could blow up in everyone’s faces, Reed reaches out to Sam (Ben Whishaw, returning to cinematic espionage after his turn as Q in the 007 flicks) to watch her back. Sam is an assassin by trade who has a history with Sam, and a brotherly desire to keep her safe. Unfortunately, Sam also has a history with certain unsavoury elements in the local criminal community who aren’t too happy to see him back in town.
The six-part series is written by Joe Barton, creator of sci-fi hit The Lazarus Project. (Keep an eye out for Barton’s Lazarus leading man Paapa Essiedu in a most intriguing guest spot.) Click here to watch trailer.
9. A Nonsense Holiday with Sabrina Carpenter – Friday, December 6, Netflix
Pop singer Sabrina Carpenter hosts her very first holiday special, joined by an array of surprise guests. “I am excited to bring my take to a classic holiday variety show — infusing my love of music and comedy to make something that is uniquely me,” said Carpenter.
10. The Sticky – Friday, December 6, Prime Video | Series Premiere
Worldwide headlines were made back in 2012 when more than 3,000 tons of maple syrup, worth nearly $18 million, was stolen from a “strategic reserve” situated north of Montreal.
What came to be known as the Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist is now the inspiration for The Sticky, a new six-episode series debuting this week on Prime Video.
The series takes some huge liberties with the facts — “this is absolutely not the true story,” declares a trailer — and should be considered fiction; while the actual ringleader of the scheme was maple syrup broker Richard Vallières, The Sticky’s criminal mastermind is Ruth Landry (three-time Emmy-winner Margo Martindale), described as “a tough, middle-aged maple syrup farmer who turns to crime when the bureaucratic authorities threaten to take away everything she loves.”
Ruth is devastated to learn that recent actions taken by the association controlling Canada’s maple syrup threaten the loss of her farm. That’s when she meets Mike Byrne (Chris Diamantopoulos), a hot-headed Boston mobster, and Remy Bouchard (Guillaume Cyr), a mild-mannered (and not too bright) French-Canadian security guard at the facility where the association’s maple syrup is stored. When Remy reveals the warehouse has no security cameras, and the stock is only checked once a year, the three hatch an audacious scheme to steal it.
The Sticky is co-produced by Jamie Lee Curtis’ Comet Pictures, and the Oscar-winner has given herself a juicy supporting role as a gun-toting mob assassin.
As Curtis said in a statement, she connected with the story of “an older woman whose life is being ruined by bureaucratic men and her deciding to finally stop taking their s**t. It’s the beginning of a crime story that will make for funny and riveting television.”