Get Hip to ‘San Francisco Sounds,’ Standing Up to Cancer, Grim Arthurian Legend in ‘Winter King,’ Morgan Freeman in ‘Lioness’
A music documentary revisits the hippie era of San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury music scene. The annual Stand Up to Cancer fundraiser airs on more than 55 platforms. King Arthur lives again in the grim historical drama The Winter King. Morgan Freeman guests on Special Ops: Lioness as the U.S. Secretary of State, grilling the leaders of the covert spy operation.
San Francisco Sounds: A Place In Time
Documentary Premiere
SUNDAY: What a wild and wonderful trip it was. That’s the vibe shimmering from this evocative two-part music documentary (continuing Aug. 27) from the director and producers of 2020’s Emmy-nominated Laurel Canyon. As in that film, key members of legendary bands (including the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane) are heard but not seen as they reflect over vintage footage from the psychedelic rock scene that defined the peace-and-love hippie movement in the late 1960s from the iconic Haight-Ashbury neighborhood.
Stand Up to Cancer
SATURDAY: Showing on ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, multiple cable and streaming platforms. Part telethon, part retrospective, this year’s fund-raising event brings out star power from TV, movies, sports, news, music—and the White House, with a special appearance by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden in support of the Biden Cancer Moonshot initiative. The broadcast, seen on more than 55 networks and streaming platforms, features celebrities including Don Cheadle, Justin Timberlake, Katie Couric, Jessica Biel, Jimmy Smits, Queen Latifah and Elizabeth Banks, with a montage of comedy skits from past shows and musical highlights. At the core are segments focusing on the progress made by cancer researchers and testimony from cancer survivors.
The Winter King
Series Premiere
SUNDAY: Camelot? More like bleeds-a-lot in a grim take on the King Arthur legend, adapted from Bernard Cornwell’s Warlord Chronicles trilogy. The setting is a divided 5th-century Britain, with Arthur (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Iain De Caestecker) the banished bastard son of High King Uther (Ray Donovan’s Eddie Marsan), reluctantly returning to try to unite the warring tribes against the invading Saxons. No round table or even Guinevere—the princess (Jordan Alexandra) doesn’t appear until Episode 6 (not available for preview)—as Arthur contends with treachery worthy of Game of Thrones’ Lannister clan.
Special Ops: Lioness
SUNDAY: Oscar winner Morgan Freeman makes a commanding first appearance in Taylor Sheridan’s spy thriller as skeptical Secretary of State Edwin Mullins, beckoning Lioness Program boss Kaitlyn (Nicole Kidman) and team leader Joe (Zoe Saldaña) to be roasted over their unsanctioned mission on U.S. soil. Elsewhere, the Lioness team deals with a burglary at their safe house, while new undercover operative Cruz (Laysla De Oliveira) gets closer to her target, the emotionally susceptible Aaliyah (Stephanie Nur), during a spa day, bonding over horror movies (Paranormal Activity) and tear-jerkers (The Notebook). As they get closer, Cruz can’t help wondering, “What the f— am I doing?”
Dark Winds
SUNDAY: In the most grueling episode to date of the atmospheric crime drama, Navajo Police Lt. Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon) leaps into peril in his pursuit of psycho killer Colton Wolf (Nicholas Logan), whom he blames for his son’s death. After Wolf goes over a cliff in an escape attempt, a bloodied and injured Leaphorn follows, determined to bring justice. As they traverse a remote canyon in what begins to resemble a death march, Sgt. Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) and Sherriff Gordo (an amusingly gruff A Martinez) try to catch up.
INSIDE WEEKEND TV:
- Never Too Late to Celebrate (Saturday, 8/7c, Hallmark Channel): Married couple Alexa and Carlos PenaVega co-star in flick about an overworked dentist who reconnects with her Mexican heritage, thanks to a substitute teacher encouraging her to mark her 30th birthday with a “double quinceañera.”
- The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper: Trump and the Georgia Conspiracy (Sunday, 8/7c, CNN): Political correspondent Sara Murray contributes reporting in a rundown of the charges that led to the historic indictment charging the former president and 18 associates with a criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia.
- When Calls the Heart (Sunday, 9/8c, Hallmark Channel): Hope Valley rallies around Rosemary Coulter (Pascale Hutton) when she goes into labor later than expected.
- Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge (Sunday, 9/8c, National Geographic): The adventurer takes Hamilton star Daveed Diggs on a trek through the Great Basin Desert.
- The Challenge: USA (Sunday, 9/8c, CBS): A threatened double elimination sends the contestants into overdrive during a semi-truck challenge.
- TMZ Investigates: Gilgo Beach Serial Murders: Missed Warning Signs (Sunday, 9/8c, Fox): The muckraking organization puts its spin on the Long Island serial murder case, alleging missed clues in a botched investigation.
- Disappeared: The Bradley Sisters (Sunday, 10/9c, ID): The true-crime franchise returns with a two-hour episode revisiting the 2001 disappearance of 10-year-old Tionda and 3-year-old Diamond Bradley from their Chicago apartment.
- Sister Wives (Sunday, 10/9c, TLC): A new season opens with the fallout over Christine’s divorce from polygamist Kody Brown, including their first tense meeting as the holidays approach.
