Aubrey Plaza hosts ‘SNL’, Anna Kendrick captivates in ‘Alice, Darling’, and Octavia Spencer does some true crime podcasting.
Ah, the weekend. What are you going to watch? If you haven’t already (or even if you have) check out the quirky BritBox series Stonehouse starring Succession star Matthew Macfadyen who plays a politician who has fallen from grace and tries to save his reputation (with disastrous results). Anna Kendrick gets intense and vulnerable in Alice, Darling, a psychological thriller about a woman suffocating in a mentally abusive relationship. Saturday Night Live returns with a bang this weekend as Aubrey Plaza takes the iconic stage for the first time. Plus, Storm Reid plays a panicked teen searching for her mother in the computer screen drama Missing and Octavia Spencer and Gabrielle Union demand answers in the Apple TV+ drama Truth Be Told.
Here’s a closer look at five exciting titles hitting the big and small screens this weekend!
Stonehouse
Release Date: January 17 on BritBox
Have you seen Stonehouse? Okay, yes, this show premiered earlier this week, but it should absolutely be at the top of your weekend watchlist. Matthew Macfadyen brings his cringe and charm to the three-episode series Stonehouse where he plays the real-life, disgraced titular politician. Directed by Jon S. Baird and written by John Preston, the series explores the bumpy rise and fall of John Stonehouse, Labour Party politician and Postmaster General for Harold Wilson. As he takes on more responsibilities and is recruited by the Czechoslovakians to aid in espionage, Stonehouse finds himself in choppy waters of forgery, affairs, and more socially awkward behavior. The solution? Faking his own death in Miami, Florida. But is he successful? Not quite.
Alice, Darling
Release Date: January 20 in AMC Theaters
Do you hear that? It’s Anna Kendrick’s awards buzz. The star of the a cappella trilogy Pitch Perfect and an Oscar-nominated actress for her work alongside George Clooney in Up in the Air plays the titular role in the new thriller Alice, Darling. Directed by Mary Nighy (her feature directorial debut) and written by Alanna Francis, this tight and thoughtful thriller explores the heartbreaking and toxic reality of Alice, a woman trapped inside a psychologically abusive relationship with her artist boyfriend Simon (Charlie Carrick). What is supposed to be a fun week away with her close friends Tess (Kaniehtiio Horn) and Sophie (Wunmi Mosaku) becomes a nightmare as Alice is haunted by Simon’s emotional and psychological abuse.
Missing
Release Date: January 20 in Theaters
Where are you? The internet is scary as it is, but can you imagine watching a missing person case unfold on a computer screen in a dark theater? That’s the fascinating plot of Missing, the stand-alone follow-up thriller to the 2018 computer screen mystery Searching. Directed and co-written by Nicholas D. Johnson and Will Merrick, and from a story by Sev Ohanian and Aneesh Chaganty, the computer screen mystery follows June (Storm Reid), a young woman at home who grows desperate to track down her mother Grace (Nia Long), who went to Colombia with her boyfriend. Is she able to locate her mother using the internet and what little information she has?
Truth Be Told
Release Date: January 20 on Apple TV+
“Is there any circumstance more terrifying than when a child goes missing?" Oscar winner Octavia Spencer returns to the mic as true-crime podcaster Poppy for Season 3 of Truth Be Told. Based on Kathleen Barber’s novel Are You Sleeping and created for television by Nichelle D. Tramble, the crime drama follows true crime podcaster Poppy as she tries to unravel the mystery of Emily Mills’ disappearance. But what happens when another teen, Drea Spivey (Nia Sondaya), also goes missing? With the help of high school principal Eva (Gabrielle Union) and a determined community, Poppy tackles a series of missing person cases for her next case.
Saturday Night Live (Host Aubrey Plaza)
Release Date: January 21 on NBC
Live from New York, it’s finally Aubrey Plaza! The incredibly talented and often hilarious Parks and Recreation, Emily the Criminal, and The White Lotus star is making her Saturday Night Live hosting debut this weekend alongside musical guest Sam Smith. It might be her first time hosting, but it's certainly not the first time the actress has been in Studio 8H. When Plaza was starting out, she landed an internship at SNL, which was later followed by a character showcase at the Upright Citizens Brigade in the hopes of landing an audition. Though she never did land that coveted audition with Lorne Michaels, the deadpan and devilish performer gets to have the last laugh. Petition for an Amy Poehler walk-on!
New Episodes
Friday
Boys in Blue (Showtime)
BMF (Starz)
Fire Country (CBS)
S.W.A.T. (CBS)
Blue Bloods (CBS)
Lopez vs. Lopez (NBC)
Young Rock (NBC)
Your Honor (Showtime)
Servant (Prime Video)
Real Time with Bill Maher (Season 20 Premiere, HBO)
Truth Be Told (Season 3 Premiere, Apple TV+)
The Legend of Vox Machina (Season 2 Premiere, Prime Video)
Saturday
Saturday Night Live (Aubrey Plaza, Sam Smith, NBC)
Sunday
The L Word: Generation Q (Showtime)
Miss Scarlet and the Duke (PBS)
Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches (AMC)
The Last of Us (HBO)
Mayor of Kingstown (Paramount+)
All Creatures Great and Small (PBS)
Godfather of Harlem (MGM+)
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