What to Watch This Week: Relax With Our Top 10 TV and Movie Picks (November 25–December 1)

New on TV this week

This week’s What To Watch picks include series premieres (The Agency, The Madness), holiday specials (Family Guy, Saturday Night Live), holiday movies (Dear Santa, Nutcrackers), a doc(k) about yacht rock, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Thanksgiving NFL games, and the VOD streaming premiere of the ultra-gory holiday slasher flick, Terrifier 3. Let’s hit the couch!

Dear Santa | Paramount+ | Holiday comedy

Movie premiere, Monday, November 25: In The Farrelly Brothers’ (Dumb and Dumber) new movie, a young boy’s (Robert Timothy Smith) misspelling on a letter to Santa accidentally summons Satan (Jack Black). Jack Black as the Devil is already funny—and we can’t wait to see how that’ll pair with the Farrelly Brothers’ notoriously raunchy slapstick comedy. As of today, Dear Santa is also available to rent or buy at video-on-demand (VOD) outlets.

New on Hulu this week

Family Guy: Gift of the White Guy | Hulu | Adult animation

Series premiere, Monday, November 25: There’s much to unpack in the hilarious title Gift of the White Guy, but we won’t try to do it in this li’l 80-word blurb. In the latest Family Guy holiday special, Peter accidentally gives away Lois’s Christmas brooch as a White Elephant gift—and Stewie works to get his name off of the naughty list. Good luck on both counts, guys (you’re gonna need it).

Thanksgiving NFL games | Multiple networks | Live sports

Live sports, Thursday, November 28, see times below: Just like some people gotta have pumpkin pie after their Turkey Day dinners, others must have football—before, during, and after dinner. These three games ought to work with that schedule:

• Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions (CBS, Paramount+) at 12:30 p.m. ET.
• New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (FOX, FOX Deportes) at 4:30 p.m. ET.
• Miami Dolphins at Green Bay Packers (NBC, Telemundo, UNIVERSO, Peacock) at 8:30 p.m. ET.

See the link below for more turkey-day NFL action. And see the video link for highlights from last year’s Bears/Lions matchup.

A Saturday Night Live Thanksgiving | NBC | Comedy

Special, Wednesday, November 27, 9 p.m.: Immediately following the Countdown to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade preview, you can put the kids to bed (assuming they’re too young for SNL) and enjoy some of Saturday Night Live’s “most memorable and viral sketches about the holiday from the past 50 seasons.” NBC isn’t announcing the sketches ahead of time, but we’ve included one of our favorites , “It Girl Thanksgiving,” here (hope you saved room for the Olsen Twins’ cigarette casserole!).

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade | NBC | Parade

Special, Thursday, November 28, 8:30 a.m.: There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who await the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with bated breath, and those who think if you’ve seen one comically gigantic Garfield balloon—or fake Santa or umpteenth iteration of the Rockettes—you’ve seen ‘em all. Which one are you (not that it matters; just curious)? CableTV.com wishes both personality types a happy Thanksgiving.

The Madness | Netflix | Drama, thriller

Limited series premiere, Thursday, November 28: Colman Domingo (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Zola, Fear the Walking Dead) stars in this conspiracy thriller series from executive producer and director Clément Virgo (The Wire, Book of Negroes). The Emmy-winning actor portrays media pundit Muncie Daniels, who stumbles upon a murder in the Poconos and must clear his name of suspicion—while also contending with his estranged family and his lost ideals. All eight episodes are available to stream today.

The Agency | Paramount+ with SHOWTIME | Drama, thriller

Series premiere, Friday, November 29: Michael Fassbender, Jeffrey Wright, Jodie Turner-Smith, and Richard Gere star in this SHOWTIME political espionage thriller based on the French drama Le Bureau des Legendes. Fassbender plays covert CIA agent Martian, who is ordered to drop his cover and get back to the agency’s London base. It’s not because there’s a critical mission—not really, anyway. A lost love awaits him, and they rekindle their flame, leading to trouble. After tonight’s two-episode premiere on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, new episodes will arrive weekly on Fridays. (The Agency will also air on SHOWTIME, but the premiere date is TBD.)

New on HBO this week

Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary | HBO, Max | Documentary, music

Series premiere, Friday, November 29, 9 p.m.: First soft, breezy yacht rock—think Christopher Cross, Michael McDonald, Steely Dan, Pablo Cruise, and Toto—was cool. Then, it was cheesy and ripe for comedic riffing. Now it’s cool again. Or maybe it was always cool, and hipsters suck. Yeah, let’s go with that. ‘Cause the polished, professional yacht rock sound—despite its corny hairy chests, gold chains, and stolen-valor boat-captain hats—is as smooth as a dry martini on calm seas. If you’re a yacht rock fan or simply gold-chain curious, this documentary is for you.

New on Hulu this week

Nutcrackers | Hulu | Holiday comedy

Movie premiere, Friday, November 29: Before director David Gordon Green made his Halloween trilogy and The Exorcist: Believer, he mainly made comedies (Pineapple Express, Manglehorn). In this holiday comedy-drama, city dweller Mike Maxwell (Ben Stiller) must abandon his career and go to rural Ohio to look after his four recently orphaned nephews (played by real-life siblings). This film has all the hallmarks of the usual holiday dreck—but ’tis the season for silly and sappy.

« See last week’s recommendations