Premieres Wednesday:
Genie — That Melissa McCarthy, she just keeps on trying. Here she is again, this time teamed with British romcom king Richard Curtis to tell the story of a genie whose holiday mission is to help a guy who’s tragically down on his luck. And no, it isn’t her husband. (Peacock)
Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas — The Ted Lasso star favors a London audience with some of her favorite Yuletide numbers, with the help of some “surprise special guests.” Honestly, you just never know where Hamas is going to show up these days. (Apple TV+)
High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America — Subjects of inquiry in Season 2 include the ways in which food has been used to fuel protest and reform movements. The revolution will not be televised, but it will be brought to you by Popeyes. (Netflix)
I Don’t Expect Anyone to Believe Me — Keep an eye on your blood pressure as you watch a young writer get tormented by a vicious criminal gang. But hey, if he didn’t want to go back to working for the studios, he shouldn’t have pushed so hard for the strike to be over! (Netflix)
Squid Game: The Challenge — While we wait for Squid Game Season 2, Netflix is tiding us over with a game show in which 456 Brits compete in similar contests to win a big prize pot. The difference is that these games are supposedly nonlethal, which seems a bit beside the point. But I guess we should have known to not get our hopes up when Floor Is Lava didn’t use actual molten rock. (Netflix)
The Velveteen Rabbit — Writer Tom Bidwell, who turned Watership Down into an Emmy-winning animated series, continues his bunnylit fixation with a live action/animated adaptation of the classic kids’ book about the life-giving powers of love. Next up for Bidwell: Jojo Rabbit, but with actual rabbits. (Apple TV+)
Premieres Thursday:
My Daemon — Hellboy creator Mike Mignola miiiiight feel slightly triggered by this anime series set in a postapocalyptic Japan, where nuclear explosions release a cute little baby devil. OK, with Mignola it was Nazi occult experimentation, but how many cute demon tykes do you know? Especially if you never worked at Nickelodeon? (Netflix)
My Little Pony: Make Your Mark — As Part 1 of Chapter 6 commences, the ponies are hoping to forge an alliance with the dragons to save Equestria. Of course, the big risk is that their donor base will denounce them all as PINOs. (Netflix)
Premieres Friday:
Christmas With Walt Disney — In a film shown every year at the Walt Disney Family Museum but only now coming to streaming, Christmas-related clips from classic Disney programs are intertwined with home movies of Uncle Walt and his clan celebrating the season. Watch for the heartwarming footage of him funneling employees’ holiday bonuses to the Dick Nixon campaign without their consent. (Disney+)
Elena Knows — Claudia Piñeiro’s celebrated novel becomes a dramatic feature, telling the story of an Argentinean woman whose search for her daughter’s killer is complicated by her own battle with Parkinson’s Disease. Now there’s an idea for the next Knives Out picture: Knives Down, Please. (Netflix)
Elf Me — Proving that they understand the holiday season far better than we do, the Italians send us an inspirational flick about the fruitful relationship between a bullied kid and one of Santa’s elves, who makes elaborate weapons instead of toys. Seriously, what I wouldn’t have given for a good Howitzer instead of those stupid crew socks. (Prime Video)
Last Call for Istanbul — Two horny Turks meet cute at JFK Airport in New York, but their potential hookup is threatened by an unfortunate detail: Each of them is married to someone else. This one’s being billed as a “romantic drama.” I bet the spouses would disagree! (Netflix)
A Nearly Normal Family — Seeing their 19-year-old daughter slapped with a murder rap forces a Swedish priest and his lawyer wife to think long and hard about what they’re willing to do to save her. Then again, it’s hardly the first time a priest has thought about something long and hard. (Netflix)
Premieres Saturday:
Doctor Who: The Star Beast — The first of three 60th-anniversary specials reunites 10th (now 14th) Doctor David Tennant with Catherine Tate’s Donna. Neil Patrick Harris plays the villain of the piece — an enemy of all that is good who hasn’t made an appearance since 1966. Dang, I could have sworn we’d seen Frankie Avalon since then. (Disney+)
Premieres Sunday:
Faraway Downs — Baz Luhrmann expands his 2008 epic Australia into a six-episode series. You’d hope this will get those “Release the Luhrmann Cut” people to finally shut up, but they’ll probably complain it doesn’t have enough Cyborg or some shit. (Hulu)
Premieres Monday:
Love Like a K-Drama — Romance may bloom for real as four Japanese actresses are brought to South Korea to perform opposite a quartet of that country’s most desirable leading men. Don’t feel ashamed if you jumped to the conclusion this was a romcom (which it isn’t) and not a reality dating show (which it is). At least you didn’t assume Richard Curtis was writing the next season of Squid Game (which he shouldn’t). (Netflix)
Verified Stand-Up — WandaVision‘s Asif Ali and The Daily Show‘s Dulcé Sloan are among the 10 comedians seen performing brief sets at New York’s Webster Hall. Expect them all to be at the top of their game, because it’s gotta be inspiring for a comic to appear at a place named after Emmanuel Lewis. (Netflix)
Premieres Tuesday:
Comedy Royale — Twenty South Korean comedians compete for the honor of hosting their own Netflix series. The gag is that they don’t know the strike is over and the show will never air! (Netflix)
Subscribe to Orlando Weekly newsletters.
Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | or sign up for our RSS Feed
This article appears in Nov 22-28, 2023.