In today’s TV news roundup, Netflix announced a new holiday special from Dolly Parton, and ABC released a trailer for “Supermarket Sweep,” hosted by Leslie Jones.
DATES
Movie musical “Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square” will premiere Nov. 22 on Netflix. The film, directed and choreographed by Debbie Allen, stars Dolly Parton, Christine Baranski, Jenifer Lewis, Treat Williams, Jeanine Mason, Josh Segarra, Mary Lane Haskell, Matthew Johnson and Selah Kimbro Jones. In it, Regina Fuller (Baranski), a wealthy and unpleasant woman, returns to her small hometown in the wake of her father’s death to evict everyone right before the holiday season. Following an encounter with an angel (Parton), a rekindling of an old romance and stories from the local community, she has a change of heart. The movie will also feature 14 original songs by Parton. Ahead of the premiere date’s announcement, the nine-time Grammy award winner released the song “Christmas on the Square” from her upcoming album “A Holly Dolly Christmas,” her first holiday album release in 30 years. See the key art for the new special below.
HBO’s “The Third Day” will premiere a special live, theatrical event entitled “Autumn” on Oct. 3 to improve viewers’ experience of the six-episode limited series that is currently airing on Monday nights at 9 p.m. The 12-hour event will stream exclusively on HBO’s Facebook page and will also be available after the initial broadcast. “Autumn” will take audiences into the show’s universe on the island of Osea, serving as a bridge though not a vital connecting component between the three episodes of “Summer” and “Winter.” The live event, shot in a continuous take and following the events of a single day, will feature members of “The Third Day” cast, with guest star Florence + The Machine vocalist Florence Welch.
FIRST LOOKS
ABC premiered a trailer for its reboot of the 1960s classic TV game show “Supermarket Sweep” with host and executive producer Leslie Jones. Premiering Oct. 18, the fast-paced show will test players’ grocery shopping skills and knowledge of products as three teams of two compete to win cash prizes. To kick off the series premiere, ABC will travel to six states in an 18-foot shopping cart and make stops at local grocery stores in Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., where shoppers will be given gift cards to help cover the cost of their checkout bill. Watch the trailer below.
PROGRAMMING
The Oprah Winfrey Network announced a digital animated election-themed comedy short series entitled “Sincerely, Camille,” which premiered the first two episodes on Twitter Sept. 29 and will be made available on OWN’s digital platforms the following day. Created by Munirah Safiyah Jones, the six-part series is part of the network’s get-out-the-vote initiative, offering a humorous yet informative outlet for the current political climate amid the election cycle through the lens of three Black women’s experiences. The satirical series, which will roll out twice weekly, follows Camille, Staci and Sara as they navigate work, life and relationships and strive to engage their communities. Touching on topics such as accessible health care and criminal justice reform, the episodes aim to provide insightful social commentary on issues that affect Black women.
LMN announced its fall slate featuring 13 new movies that will premiere during the network’s second annual Shocktober, Hateful & Grateful and Slay Bells themed months. Launching Oct. 1 with its Shocktober slate, LMN will air thrillers “Deadly Double Cross,” starring Victoria Pratt and Christina Cox. On Oct. 2 comes “Betrayed By My Husband,” about a woman trying to prove her innocence; Oct. 9 brings “Is There a Killer on My Street?“; Oct. 16 is “Trapped By My Father’s Killer,” about the relationship between a convicted murderer and the woman who sent him to prison, and Oct. 23 is a modern Los Angeles-based whodunit “The Pom Pom Murders.” Beginning in November, Hateful & Grateful will feature high school thrillers “Killer Competition” on Nov. 1, “Young, Stalked and Pregnant” on Nov. 14 and “Pretty Cheaters, Deadly Lies” on Nov. 21. “Finding My Daughter,” starring Cristina Rosato, Kyle Cassie and others, will air on Nov. 28. A mystery thriller with Aubrey Reynolds and Travis Caldwell, “Secrets in the Snow” premieres Dec. 5; “Pretty Little Dead Girl,” starring Makenzie Vega, Johannah Newmarch and Ben Cotton premieres Dec. 12, and “Stolen in Plain Sight,” about a mother on a quest to find her abducted child, premieres Dec. 19. An additional title will be announced for November’s Hateful & Grateful slate.
EXECUTIVE NEWS
Nickelodeon announced Conrad Montgomery will join the company as vice president of current series in animation as part of its expansion of senior leadership in animation. Montgomery will serve as executive in charge in his capacity, managing the production of various animation series from greenlights to completion and reporting to Dana Cluveris, who was also promoted to senior vice president of current series in animation. Prior to joining Nickelodeon, Montgomery served as the senior director of current series at Cartoon Network and a development and current series executive at Walt Disney Television. Additionally, Claudia Spinelli and Kelley Gardner, who will also report to Cluveris, were promoted in the development and current series divisions to senior vice president of animation development and vice president of current series in animation, respectively.
Nexstar Media Group promoted Thomas E. Carter to president and chief operating officer, effective Oct. 1. Carter will retain his current duties as chief financial officer for the time being. In conjunction with the appointment, Carter entered into an employment contract that extends through Dec. 31, 2023. He joined the company as CFO in August 2009 and played a vital role in Nexstar’s expansion, including the acquisitions of the Tribune Media Company and Media General. Prior to joining Nexstar, Carter was the managing director at Media Telecom Corporate Investment Banking at Banc of America Securities.
STREAMING
A+E Networks launched Skills + Thrills, a free ad-supported streaming channel. Available on The Roku Channel, Skills + Thrills will unveil on streaming platforms in the coming months, featuring popular reality series, as well as nonfiction and competition programming, such as “Top Gear,” “Duck Dynasty” and “Ice Road Truckers.” Skills + Thrills is the latest streaming channel unfurled from A+E Networks, joining Lively Place and Crime 360, which feature lifestyle series and criminal investigation series, respectively.
LATE NIGHT
Tonight, John Cena and BTS will appear on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” which is back in production in-studio; Fallon will also also deliver a live monologue in this episode. Sen. Cory Booker and Public Enemy are tonight’s guests on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” while Sarah Silverman, Lili Reinhart, Phoebe Bridgers and Jessica Burdeaux will be on “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” and Sen. Bernie Sanders, Kal Penn and HAIM are guests on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”
