The coming week in TV includes the premieres of NBC comedies featuring Dwayne Johnson and Kenan Thompson, the third To All the Boys movie on Netflix, a new season of Queen Sugar and the return of American Idol.
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
The fourth run of American Idol on ABC has already attracted some attention because Claudia Conway — the daughter of former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway and anti-Trump activist George Conway who has a level of social media notoriety in her own right — would be among the auditioners in the season premiere (8 p.m. Sunday).
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Whether she makes it through the audition round will be revealed during the premiere. Otherwise, expect the usual Idol mix of hopefuls looking to be awarded a golden ticket from judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan. Ryan Seacrest returns as host.
Also on broadcast …
Dwayne Johnson narrates and appears in Young Rock (8 p.m. Tuesday, NBC), a comedy based on his childhood and extended family. It’s part of a new comedy block with Kenan (8:30 p.m.), starring Saturday Night Live fixture Kenan Thompson. Fox debuts game show Cherries Wild at 7 p.m. Sunday, and Bless the Harts returns from hiatus at 7:30. Henry Louis Gates hosts PBS’ two-part documentary The Black Church (9 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday), tracing the essential role of the church in the lives of Black Americans.
On streaming …
New: To All the Boys: Always and Forever (Friday, Netflix) completes the trilogy of YA romances based on Jenny Han’s novels. Lara Jean (Lana Condor) is readying for graduation and imagines what her life with her family, friends and Peter (Noah Centineo) might be like after high school ends.
Also new: Buried by the Bernards (Friday, Netflix) centers on a family-run funeral home in Memphis. Amazon’s movie The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (Friday) is based on a short story by Lev Grossman. Kevin James stars as the head mechanic for a racing team in The Crew (Monday, Netflix). Will Smith hosts docuseries Amend: The Fight for America (Wednesday, Netflix), about the impact of the 14th Amendment.
On cable …
Returning: When production on Queen Sugar paused last spring and summer, creator Ava DuVernay, showrunner Anthony Sparks and supervising producer Norman Vance overhauled the show’s fifth season overhauled the show’s stories to incorporate politics, COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter protests. The reconceived season premieres at 8 p.m. Tuesday on OWN.
Also returning: New seasons of Last Week Tonight (11 p.m. Sunday, HBO), Temptation Island (10 p.m. Tuesday, USA), The Real Housewives of New Jersey (9 p.m. Wednesday, Bravo) and Good Trouble (10 p.m. Wednesday, Freeform).
New: FX’s docuseries Hip Hop Uncovered (10 p.m. Friday) tells the story of the music via five power brokers whose names might not as well known but who have been essential to the survival and growth of both the music and culture of hip hop.
Also new: Starz debuts travel series Men in Kilts, starring Outlander’s Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish, at 9 p.m. Sunday, followed by period drama The Luminaries at 9:30 p.m. CNN has two docuseries premiering Sunday: Stanley Tucci: In Search of Italy at 9 p.m. and Lincoln: Divided We Stand at 10 p.m.
In case you missed it …
Framing Britney Spears has captured the pop culture zeitgeist in the past week, as its critical reassessment of media coverage of the pop star in the early 2000s and the ongoing story of the controversial conservatorship partly controlled by her father, Jamie. The documentary, the latest installment of The New York Times Presents series, is streaming on Hulu.
