‘The Voice,’ ‘DWTS’ & More Returning Favorites Airing Mondays This Fall
Fall Preview
Ready to revisit some familiar favorites this fall? Monday nights are a must for hits like Dancing with the Stars, The Voice, and more. Below, get a taste of what shows will kick off your weeks this season.
Back to Life (Sept. 13, 10/9c, Showtime)
No one gets out of jail free. Just ask Miri Matteson (this dark comedy’s creator, Daisy Haggard), who continues her bumpy reentry into society after imprisonment for accidentally killing her friend as a teen. In Season 2, Miri gets a new job, finds her old hair crimper (tragically, she uses it) and continues romancing widower Billy (Adeel Akhtar). “It’s not easy when you haven’t kissed a boy in 18 years and his mother thinks you’re a psychopath,” Haggard says. Miri’s also at risk. Her victim’s dad “wants to destroy her.”
(Credit: ABC/Adrienne Raquel)
Dancing With the Stars (Sept. 20, 8/7c, ABC)
For the milestone 30th season, the biggest round of applause will surely be for 77-year-old Len Goodman, who returns as a judge after stepping away due to the pandemic. The Brit rejoins Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough (who stays after filling in for Goodman), as well as host Tyra Banks. “It’ll be a lot of fun to see [Len] and Derek interacting as fellow judges,” says exec producer Andrew Linares. “I’m also anxious to see how Tyra handles Grumpy Len!” Celebrities announced to compete thus far: Dance Moms vet JoJo Siwa, with the show’s first same-sex partner, and U.S. gymnastics Olympian Suni Lee.
The Voice (Sept. 20, 8/7c, NBC)
Sure, Grammy winner Ariana Grande (right) is a music industry powerhouse, but how will she do sitting alongside Blake Shelton, John Legend and Kelly Clarkson for the competition’s 21st season? “Ariana is a force! She goes toe to toe with all the coaches,” exclaims exec producer Audrey Morrissey, adding that Grande offers more than playful banter. “She’s a very technical vocalist who homes in on performance nuance and subtleties.” She’s also got a unique incentive to attract singers to her team: “Ari has a curated box of her go-to vocal aids like lozenges and teas.
All American ( Oct. 25, 8/7c, The CW)
After a cliffhanger-heavy Season 3 finale, the football drama picks up days later. Even in that short time, the rift between star wide receiver Spencer James (Daniel Ezra) and betrayed coach Billy Baker (Taye Diggs) has widened. “Spencer and Billy are like family, which means they love hard and they fight hard,” exec producer Nkechi Okoro Carroll says. More urgent: saving high schooler Layla (Greta Onieogou) from obsessive Carrie (Anna Lore), who has deadly plans for them both (she wrote a suicide note in Layla’s name before they left for Tahoe!). Says Carroll: “That situation escalates very quickly.”
This is an excerpt from TV Guide Magazine’s 2021 Returning Favorites issue. For more inside scoop on the new fall TV season, pick up the issue, on newsstands now.
