This Week in TV: Super Bowl LV, ‘Malcolm & Marie,’ ‘The Equalizer’

The biggest single show on American television airs Sunday, when the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers take the field for Super Bowl LV. There are other things on TV in the coming seven days too, including the final season of a CW series, three programs (two series and a yearly special) focused on dogs, and a buzzed-about Netflix movie.

Below is The Hollywood Reporter‘s rundown of premieres, returns and specials over the next seven days. It would be next to impossible to watch everything, but let THR point the way to worthy options for the coming week. All times are ET/PT unless noted.

The Big Show

Fun fact: The Buccaneers will be the first team to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium. Whether that’s any kind of advantage — Raymond James Stadium in Tampa will be about a third full, due to COVID restrictions — remains to be seen as the Bucs and Chiefs play the Super Bowl, kicking off about 6:15 p.m. ET/3:15 p.m. PT on Sunday on CBS.

Of course, it’s much more than just the on-field action that will draw somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 million viewers: The Weeknd will headline the halftime show; Grammy nominees Jazmine Sullivan and Eric Church will perform the national anthem; inaugural poet Amanda Gorman will recite a poem before the game; and lots of companies will pay upwards of $5 million per 30-second ad to remind viewers We’re All in This Together. CBS Sports’ lead NFL team of Jim Nantz and Tony Romo will call the game, with reporters Tracy Wolfson, Evan Washburn and Jay Feely contributing.

Also on broadcast …

Following the Super Bowl, CBS will debut The Equalizer (approximately 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. ET), a remake of the 1980s series with Queen Latifah in the title role as a woman people turn to when they run out of other options for justice. The CW debuts the final season of Black Lightning at 9 p.m. Monday (and is developing a spinoff), and competition series Tough As Nails premieres its second season at 8 p.m. Wednesday on CBS.

On streaming …

New: Euphoria star Zendaya and creator Sam Levinson head to Netflix for the feature film Malcolm & Marie (Friday). The black and white movie, shot with minimal crew over the summer, stars Zendaya and John David Washington as a Hollywood couple who engage in a drawn-out fight after returning from the premiere of his potentially star-making movie.

Also new: Thriller The Head (Thursday, HBO Max) is set in an Antarctic research station. Brazilian drama Invisible City (Friday, Netflix) imagines a world where mythical creatures live (mostly) unseen alongside humans. Apple TV+ debuts animated kids’ series The Snoopy Show on Friday. Docuseries Crime Scene: Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel (Wednesday, Netflix) examines the infamous L.A. hotel two serial killers called home.

Returning: Canine grooming competition Haute Dog debuts new episodes Thursday on HBO Max.

On cable …

Specials: The 17th annual Puppy Bowl — and its kitty halftime show and Twitter commentator Meep the bird — will bring a three-hour dose of adorable to Super Bowl Sunday. It kicks off at 2 p.m. on Animal Planet and Discovery+. Hallmark Channel also offers up some cuteness competition with its eighth Kitten Bowl, also at 2 p.m. Sunday.

Also: ESPN’s latest 30 for 30 documentary, Al Davis vs. the NFL (9 p.m. Thursday), profiles the late Raiders owner. Robin Roberts narrates Tuskegee Airmen: Legacy of Courage (8 p.m. Wednesday, History), which celebrates the Black pilots (including her father) who served in World War II.

New: Fast Foodies (10:30 p.m. Thursday, TruTV) challenges chefs Kristen Kish, Jeremy Ford and Justin Sutherland to re-create a celebrity guest’s favorite fast food item, then reimagine the dish.

Returning: Thursday brings new seasons of Summer House (9 p.m., Bravo) and Impractical Jokers (10 p.m., TruTV).

In case you missed it …

We Are: The Brooklyn Saints is the latest in a burgeoning subgenre of docuseries that profile amateur football players and their coaches. In this case, the players are part of a youth team in New York, and THR critic Daniel Fienberg notes that while on-field action is secondary, the four-episode series is “quite solid if your investment is in people.” It’s streaming on Netflix.

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