Stephen King’s ‘Institute’ Returns, Gilded Age Homecoming, a Sunday ‘Cupertino,’ ‘Tournament of Champions’

The Institute

SUNDAY: The kids are not all right in the second season of the thriller based on Stephen King’s page-turner about psychically gifted youngsters trapped as lab-rat pawns in one of those nebulous secret underground agencies. After bringing down the Institute’s Maine facility in the first season, valuable precog Luke (Joe Freeman) is on the run with several friends and helpful ex-cop Tim (Ben Barnes). After several months in hiding, it’s time to make their move to try to expose and bring down the global Institute, but not if they get caught. Mary-Louise Parker, as their disgraced former jailer Ms. Sigsby, has her own agenda, and Game of Thrones‘ Alfie Allen joins the Institute team as a tech billionaire with a sinister AI vision of how to adapt our heroes’ special talents.

The Gilded Age

SUNDAY: It’s not the happiest of homecomings for New York’s nouveau riche society queen Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon). Her gilded mansion seems empty without estranged husband George (Morgan Spector), who’s obsessed with enacting rough justice on his would-be assassin when he’s not sparring with oil mogul John D. Rockefeller (Neal Huff). This episode, however, belongs to Christine Baranski‘s marvelously haughty Agnes van Rhijn, whose disdain for such modern notions as publicity and telephones is endlessly quotable. (My favorite this week: “You were on the Lower East Side after 7 o’clock?”) New faces from the New York theater scene include Tony winner Bonnie Milligan (Kimberly Akimbo) as a nosy Ladies Home Journal editor, Tony nominee Taylor Trensch (Floyd Collins) as an overeager new footman, and Obie winner Elizabeth Marvel (Homeland) as a nurse at the Settlement House where Marian (Louisa Jacobson) selflessly volunteers.

Cupertino

SUNDAY: We’ve been beating the drum all fall for this terrific series about scrappy lawyers taking on Silicon Valley tech titans and the legal quagmires of AI. The show is at its most clever in this special Sunday episode (followed by two repeats), in which lawyers Michael (Mike Colter) and Olivia (Rachel Keller) race the clock in their efforts to reverse the decision of an AI algorithm that has denied a liver transplant to a young woman in favor of a wealthier patient who jumped the line. The twist: All parties in this legal dispute are caught in a classic California traffic jam, deliberating and arguing on their phones and screens, including the judge (Peter Riegert) in a ride-share. The issue of bioethics is serious, but the treatment here is a delight.

Tournament of Champions: All-Star Christmas

SUNDAY: One of the channel’s most popular competition franchises returns with a holiday flavor for the second time, pitting multiple teams of two top chefs in a festive showdown, with $100,000 for charity on the line. Guy Fieri is the host, welcoming dynamic duos including Food Network personalities Jet Tila with Alex Guarnaschelli, cake artist Grace Pak with The Restaurant‘s Rocco DiSpirito, celebrity chef Curtis Stone with executive pastry chef Mitzi Reyes, and Ultimate Baking Championship winner Molly Coen with executive chef Chayil Johnson.

College Football

SATURDAY: A highlight of another busy weekend of college football action pits the undefeated Hurricanes of Miami, No. 1 in the CFP selection committee’s first rankings, against No. 11-ranked Notre Dame. To whet fans’ appetite, ESPN‘s College GameDay (Saturday, 9 am/ET) parks on Library Lawn at Notre Dame, the 13th time the Fighting Irish have hosted the popular panel. Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis, who witnessed an historic 1988 match-up between these teams, is the guest picker.

INSIDE WEEKEND TV:

• Terry McMillan Presents: Paradise with You (Saturday, 8/7c, Lifetime): Waiting until the reasonable week of Thanksgiving to begin its holiday-movie onslaught, Lifetime presents the latest romance from author Terry McMillan. Taye Diggs stars as a soon-to-retire NFL star who connects with interior designer Heather Hemmens on the exotic Caribbean isle of Nevis, until they realize they’re both bidding on the same luxury estate.
• Holiday Unplugged (Saturday, 8/7c, Hallmark Channel): Nikki DeLoach is a widowed mom who enlists her kids’ former kindergarten teacher (Juan Pablo Di Pace) to help restore her family’s lost home videos, insisting the family stay screen-free for Christmas. Sunday’s holiday Hallmark movie, A Season of Promises (8/7c), stars Brooke D’Orsay and Ali Liebert as sisters playing Cupid for their widowed dad (Desperate Housewives‘ James Denton).
• Karen Kingsbury’s The Christmas Ring (Saturday, 8/7c, Great American Family): Military widow Vanessa (Jana Kramer) asks widowed antiques dealer Ben (Benjamin Hollingsworth) to help her locate a treasured family heirloom that dates back to D-Day. Frasier‘s Kelsey Grammer co-stars as Ben’s father, who unknowingly has put the ring up for sale. The channel’s An Ozark Mountain Christmas airs Sunday (8/7c).
• Cue the Laughs (Saturday, 10/9c, IFC; streaming on AMC+ and All Reality): Comedian Adam Ray hosts a clip show with a twist: The laugh-out-loud videos are packaged as real-life versions of classic sitcom staples, including workplace comedies and vacation episodes.
• Saturday Night Live (Saturday, 11:30/10:30c, 8:30 pm/PT, NBC): The comedian known as Druski is the first-time guest host, with The Strokes returning for the fifth time as musical guests.
• CBS News Sunday Morning (Sunday, check local listings, CBS): Interviews include Emmy winner Julia Garner (Ozark, the upcoming The Altruists) and Oscar winner Dame Judi Dench.
• 60 Minutes (Sunday, 7/6c, CBS): Ross Douthat interviews the president following this week’s historic midterm elections.
• Animal Control (Sunday, 8/7c, Fox): Expect chaos when Emily (Vella Lovell) and Shred (Michael Rowland) host a housewarming party, their first as a couple. Followed by The Simpsons (8:30/7:30c), Universal Basic Guys (9/8c), and Grimsburg (9:30/8:30c), where Det. Flute (Jon Hamm) and son Stan (Rachel Dratch) temporarily switch bodies.
• Sunday Night Football (Sunday, 8:15 pm/ET, NBC): The Tampa Bay Buccaneers play the Chicago Bears in play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico‘s 300th NFL broadcast.
• King of Drag (Sunday, 9 pm/ET, streaming on Revry): A winner is crowned in the Season 2 finale.
• The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (Sunday, approximately 12:05 am/11:05c, NBC): A special Sunday episode features guests Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, and Ariana Grande.