Welcome to ‘Krapopolis,’ ‘Ellen and the Gorillas’ ’60 Minutes’ and ‘Sloths’, Daryl Dixon in Paris

Documentary Premiere

8/7c

SATURDAY: Former talk host Ellen DeGeneres puts her advocacy for animals into action in a two-hour documentary depicting her efforts to build The Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fun in Rwanda. Despite nature’s challenges (volcanos and earthquakes) and the pandemic during the construction phase, the Campus opened in February 2022 and has welcomed more than 40,000 visitors to experience its message of conservation of gorillas and their habitat.

Special

10/9c

SATURDAY: The Saturday Night Live comedy writer and performer headlines her first HBO stand-up special from Brooklyn Steel, riffing on her recent engagement and more aggravating observations about Spanx and the like.

7:30/6:30c

SUNDAY: Animal stories are second nature to this revered newsmagazine, now in its 56th season. Sharyn Alfonsi heads to Costa Rica to explore the world of the sloth, whose “superpower of slowing down” has contributed to the mammal’s ability to survive and adapt for 60 million years. Other reports include new correspondent Cecilia Vega investigating California’s new initiative on homelessness and Holly Williams in Ukraine following the money the U.S. has invested in the war against Russia’s calamitous invasion.

Series Premiere

8/7c

SUNDAY: Dan Harmon’s (Rick and Morty) jolly and barbed send-up of ancient Greece joins Fox’s Sunday animation block—the rest of the shows premiere next week—following a football double-header as a robust lead-in. (Of course, NBC will be shifting into Sunday Night Football mode at the same time, with the Steelers taking on the Raiders.) The fitfully funny Krapopolis depicts the agonizing birth pains of civilization out of barbaric times, with feckless King Tyrannis (Richard Ayoade) preaching a gospel of diplomacy, urging farming over fighting to little avail. For him, a flaming head on a pike outside the city gates is a “teachable moment,” though few are listening. Launching with two episodes, the series’ voice cast includes Ted Lasso’s Emmy winner Hannah Waddingham as Tyrannis’ vain goddess mother Deliria and What We Do in the Shadows’ scene-stealing Matt Berry as his hedonistic father Shlub, a hybrid creature who’s part human, horse, lion and scorpion. This would be a keeper even if it hadn’t already been renewed for a second and third season.

9/8c

SUNDAY: The Eiffel Tower is still standing, more or less, and so is Jim Morrison’s grave as the Walking Dead spinoff sends fan favorite Daryl (Norman Reedus) and his new entourage into the City of Lights for more Grand Guignol peril. Highlights of an eventful episode include a trip through the creepy skull-lined catacombs, where Daryl is reminded of the many plagues that Europe has survived over the centuries. Surprises await in a decadent underground nightclub operated by a figure from Isabelle’s (Clémence Poésy) past. And as relentless as Les Miserables’ Javert, the soldier known as Codron (Ramain Levi) pledges not to stop until he finds and takes down Daryl.

9/8c

SUNDAY: The cold case deepens in the fourth episode of the terrific Masterpiece Mystery! series, just in time for the personal lives of DCI Jessie James (Sinéad Keenan) and DI Sunny Khan (Sanjeev Bhaskar) to hit rock bottom. Their misery carries over into their professional relationship, forcing them both to open up at last and try to remove the barriers that are keeping them from working together effectively. Only then can they get to the bottom of who killed Precious and stuffed her in the chimney: the social worker, the mother, the junkie, or the Tory politician, all with secrets to unearth.

Inside Weekend TV:

• Global Citizen Festival 2023 (Saturday, 4 pm/ET, livestreamed on Hulu): Celebrities and activists gather in Central Park in an annual event calling for an end to extreme poverty. Red Hot Chili Peppers, Lauryn Hill, Anitta, D-Nice, Conan Gray, and Sofia Carson are among the performers. ABC airs highlights on Sunday at 7/6c.

• Champions for Change (Saturday, 8 pm/ET): More uplift in the seventh annual ceremony honoring community and world change-makers, with 12 anchors and correspondents introducing their personal heroes.

• Stolen Baby: The Murder of Heidi Broussard (Saturday, 8/7c, Lifetime): Young Sheldon’s Emily Osment stars in a much darker pregnancy storyline in the fact-based account of best friends Heidi (Anna Hopkins) and Magen (Osment), who pretends to be pregnant as she travels to her expecting friend’s side when she gives birth. When Heidi goes missing, everyone fears the worst.

• Inside Politics with Manu Raju (Sunday, noon/ET, CNN): The anchor and chief congressional correspondent takes on hosting duties, with guests including The New York Times’ Julie Hirschfield Davis and Punchbowl News’ John Bresnahan.

• Collector’s Call (6:30/5:30c, MeTV): The fourth season ends with a visit to Queen superfan Joe Dsemelio’s collection of rare rock artifacts.

• Billions (Sunday, 8/7c, Showtime): Prince (Corey Stoll) makes a move to advance his political career that puts his protégé Philip (Toney Goins) in a tough spot.

• José Andrés and Family in Spain (Sunday, 9/8c, CNN): A six-part series travels with the chef and humanitarian as he explores the culture and cuisine of his homeland with his three American-raised daughters.
• Kerry Washington: Thicker Than Water—A Conversation with Robin Roberts (Sunday, 10/9c, ABC): The first project from the Good Morning America anchor’s new production unit is a special edition of 20/20 in which she interviews the former Scandal star in advance of her Thicker Than Water memoir’s publication.