What's on TV this week—Blonde hits Netflix, Ghosts returns for season 2
Plus, Nick Kroll's standup special, ABC's expansion of The Rookie-verse, a Kerry Washington-produced drama, and more
Welcome to What’s On, our weekly picks of must-watch shows. Here’s what you need to watch from Sunday, September 25 to Thursday, September 29. All times are Eastern. [Note: The weekend edition of What’s On drops on Fridays.]
The biggies
Blonde (Netflix, Wednesday, 3:01 a.m.)
Ana de Armas morphs into Marilyn Monroe in Blonde. Written and directed by Andrew Dominik, the controversial film is based on Joyce Carol Oates’ biographical fiction book of the same name. It follows Marilyn’s traumatic childhood, rise to fame as America’s sweetheart, and how her onscreen appearances contrasted with her tumultuous life behind the camera. Adrien Brody, Bobby Cannavale, Xavier Samuel, Julianne Nicholson, Toby Huss, and Sara Paxton also star. Here’s a snippet from The A.V. Club’s review:
Ana de Armas (Knives Out) delivers a truly extraordinary performance as the platinum superstar and icon, while Dominik and his collaborators discover endlessly inventive ways to recreate highlights from Monroe’s iconography.
Ghosts (CBS, Thursday, 8:30 p.m.)
One of last year’s best new comedies, Ghosts returns for its anticipated second season. The quirky, wholesome network sitcom centers on married couple Sam (Rose McIver) and Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar), who move into the mansion Sam inherited after an ancestor passes away, hoping to turn it into a B&B. But they must contend with the several ghosts from various eras still living there, especially now that Sam can see them. The second season premiere will answer whether Jay, who hit his head in the first-season finale, can also spot the undead living in his home. The ensemble includes Rebecca Wisocky, Danielle Pinnock, Brandon Scott Jones, and Asher Grodman. Keep an eye out for The A.V. Club’s review on Monday.
Hidden gems
Reasonable Doubt (Hulu, Tuesday, 12:01 a.m.)
Reasonable Doubt is the first scripted series by Onyx Collective, Disney’s new content brand that gives a platform to creators of color. Raamla Mohamed and Kerry Washington team up behind the scenes for this legal drama, led by Emayatzy Corinealdi. She plays defense attorney Jax Stewart, who has some ethical problems and wild interpretations of the law but is still a brilliant lawyer, bucking the system every chance she gets. The cast also boasts Michael Ealy, Sean Patrick Thomas, McKinley Freeman, and Aderinsola Olabode.
Nick Kroll: Little Big Boy (Netflix, Tuesday, 3:01 a.m.)
If you like Big Mouth and how Nick Kroll’s brain functions in general, then his Netflix comedy special should be for you. The actor, who also stars in Don’t Worry Darling, will share his origin story, his first heartbreak, a strange hypnosis experience, and obviously, the trash-talking celebrity voice in his head.
Eat The Rich: The GameStop Saga (Netflix, Wednesday, 3:01 a.m.)
Executive produced by Dan Cogan and Liz Garbus, Eat The Rich: The GameStop Saga is a comedic three-part docuseries about a group of misfits who banded together to save GameStop from the clutches of Wall Street bigwigs.
More good stuff
Chefs Vs. Wild (Hulu, Monday, 12:01 a.m.)
Chefs Vs. Wild is a marriage between a cooking and survival reality series. Two world-class chefs, Kiran Jethwa and Valerie Segrest, are dropped into the wilderness, where they’ll embark on a grueling mission to forage wild ingredients to create a restaurant-worthy meal.
11 Minutes (Paramount+, Tuesday, 3:01 a.m.)
Jeff Zimbalist directs the four-part docuseries 11 Minutes, which chronicles the tragic shooting during 2017's Route 91 Harvest Music Festival. It will feature the stories of those who were at the event, including musician Jason Aldean, members of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police force, trauma teams at Sunrise Hospital, concertgoers, and festival emcee Storme Warren.
The Rookie: Feds (ABC, Tuesday, 10 p.m.)
In this house, we support Niecy Nash. The actor leads ABC’s new drama, The Rookie: Feds, a spin-off of Nathan Fillion-starring The Rookie. She plays high-school-counselor-turned-FBI-trainee Simone Clark, the oldest trainee to attend the FBI Academy, alongside a cast including Britt Robertson, Frankie Faison, James Lesure, Felix Solis, and Kevin Zegers.
Can’t miss recaps
House Of The Dragon (HBO, Sunday, 9 p.m.)
Kevin Can F**K Himself (AMC, Monday, 9 p.m.)
Andor (Disney+, Wednesday, 3:01 a.m.)
Archer (FXX, Wednesday, 10 p.m.)
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law (Disney+, Thursday, 3:01 a.m.)
Atlanta (FX, Thursday, 10 p.m.)
Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power (Prime Video, Friday, 12:01 a.m.)
Arriving now
The Simpsons season 34 premiere, The Great North season three premiere, Bob’s Burgers season 13 premiere, Family Guy season 21 premiere (FOX, Sunday, 8-10 p.m.)
The Rookie season five premiere (ABC, Sunday, 10 p.m.)
La Brea season two premiere (NBC, Tuesday, 9 p.m.)
Young Sheldon season six premiere, Ghosts season two premiere, So Help Me Todd series premiere (CBS, Thursday, 8-10 p.m.)
Welcome To Flatch season two premiere, Call Me Kat season three premiere (FOX, Thursday, 9-10 p.m.)
CSI: Vegas season two premiere (CBS, Thursday, 10 p.m.)
Ending soon
City On A Hill season three finale (Showtime, Sunday, 10 p.m.)
Reservation Dogs season two finale (FX on Hulu, Wednesday, 12:01 a.m.)
Resident Alien season two finale (Syfy, Wednesday, 10 p.m.)
Bump season one finale (The CW, Thursday, 8:30 p.m.)