‘George & Tammy,’ Holiday TV Deluge, College Football, ‘SNL’ Returns

Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain are country legends and lovers George Jones and Tammy Wynette in a tuneful limited series. CBS and OWN are the latest networks providing new holiday movies to TV’s overstuffed gift bag. Settle in for a full day of college football conference championships on Saturday. Keke Palmer hosts Saturday Night Live in the first of three final episodes ringing out 2022.

George & Tammy - Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain as George Jones and Tammy Wynette
Dana Hawley/Showtime

George & Tammy

Series Premiere

SUNDAY: They lived their lives and conducted their torrid, tormented relationship as if reenacting the country-music lyrics that made them famous. Michael Shannon and Oscar winner Jessica Chastain star, and provide their own vocals, as country legends George Jones and Tammy Wynette in a six-part limited series that often plays like a real-life version of A Star Is Born. (See the full review.)

Amanda Kloots and Paul Greene on 'Fit for Christmas'
Michael Courtney/CBS

Fit for Christmas

Movie Premiere

SUNDAY: Network TV movies are almost as rare as a white Christmas in Miami, but CBS gets back in the game with a holiday film starring and executive produced by The Talk’s Amanda Kloots, who also co-wrote the film’s story. She plays Audrey, a Christmas-phile fitness instructor who gets cozy with a businessman (Paul Greene) who’s planning to turn the community center where she works into a lucrative resort.

Tyler Adams
Getty

World Cup

SATURDAY & SUNDAY: It’s make-or-break time for team USA as the knockout round of 16 begins with U.S. facing the Netherlands (Saturday, 10 am/ET, Fox), followed by the ArgentinaAustralia match (2 pm/ET, Fox). Sunday’s matches pit France against Poland (10 am/ET, FS1) and Senegal against England (2 pm/ET, FS1).

Password - Host Keke Palmer
Jordin Althaus/NBC

Saturday Night Live

SATURDAY: The irrepressible Keke Palmer (Nope, Password) makes her debut as guest host in the first of three new episodes in December. (The Only Murders in the Building duo of Steve Martin and Martin Short, both with long SNL histories, are next week’s hosts, and Elvis star Austin Butler is the first-time host Dec. 17.) SZA returns as musical guest for her second time.

College Football Conference Championships:

  • Marking the end of the college football season, teams battle it out for their conference titles through the day on Saturday. Undefeated TCU faces Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship (noon/ET, ABC), Toledo takes on Ohio in the MAC Championship (noon/ET, ESPN), Coastal Carolina goes to war with Troy in the Sun Belt Championship (3:30 pm/ET, ESPN), undefeated Georgia looks to whomp LSU in the SEC Championship (4 pm/ET, CBS), Fresno State faces Boise State in the Mountain West Championship (4 pm/ET, Fox), and in prime time, the Big Ten Championship (8 pm/ET, Fox) pits undefeated Michigan against Purdue, and Clemson takes on North Carolina in the ACC Championship (8 pm/ET, ABC).

TV Yule Log:

Inside Weekend TV:

  • 2022 NASCAR Awards (Saturday, 8 pm/ET, streaming on Peacock): Country star Erin Kinsey sings her hit “Just Drive” at the Nashville ceremony honoring the 2022 Series champs Joey Logano (Cup Series), Ty Gibbs (Xfinity Series) and Zane Smith (Truck Series).
  • 60 Minutes (Sunday, 7:30/6:30c, 7 pm/PT, CBS): Bill Whitaker interviews French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, of the eve of his trip to Washington, D.C. for a state visit and White House dinner.
  • Yellowstone (Sunday, 8/7c, Paramount Network): John Dutton (Kevin Costner) would rather brand cattle on the ranch than attend to state business. He may need to wrangle daughter Beth (Kelly Reilly) as well, who’s none too happy that her dad has brought environmentalist Summer (Piper Perabo) back home.
  • Let the Right One In (Sunday, 10/9c, Showtime): Things are dicey for Mark (Demián Bichir) in the supernatural drama’s penultimate episode. He’s now a prisoner after being caught snooping around the Logan estate and Claire’s (Grace Gummer) experiments in finding a cure for vampirism. When his vampire daughter Eleanor (Madison Taylor Baez) learns her dad is in danger, watch out.