New on TV this week
TV Tan Podcast, which I’ve recorded (almost) every week since 2013, just dropped its 500th episode. Tommy Milagro and I taped it in front of a live audience this past weekend, so it’s a little wild and loose, but at least it’s free.
This week’s What To Watch recs include the final season of The Umbrella Academy, new comedy Mr. Throwback, the premiere of Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the return of Industry, and Summer Olympics breakdance (aka breaking) action. It’s all good in the (TV) neighborhood!
New on Netflix this week
The Umbrella Academy | Netflix | Drama, fantasy
Season 4 premiere, Thursday, August 8: Netflix is taking a break from splitting up final seasons of beloved series into chunks spread over months by dropping all of The Umbrella Academy’s swan song simultaneously. Of course, there are only six episodes as opposed to the usual 10, but let’s just savor the moment. When we last left the superhero fam in 2022, they’d slipped into an alternate timeline minus their powers, and now new enemies are gunning for them. It’s been a great ride—so long, TUA. Watch trailer
New on Peacock this week
Mr. Throwback | Peacock | Comedy
Series premiere, Thursday, August 8: Hapless sports memorabilia dealer Danny (Adam Pally) reunites with his grade-school teammate Steph Curry (NBA star Steph Curry himself), who’s being shadowed by a documentary crew because, duh, he’s Steph Curry. Danny sees this all as a chance to get his life back on track. Steph’s skeptical media manager Kimberly (Ego Nwodim), on the other hand, just sees a problem. Mr. Throwback comes from the team behind Pally’s Happy Endings, so the funny is guaranteed. Watch trailer
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New on Prime Video this week
The Mallorca Files | Prime Video | Drama, mystery
Season 3 premiere, Thursday, August 8: Last week, I told you about the British series The Mallorca Files moving from Freevee to Prime Video ahead of its third season premiere, which turns out to have been premature news. For now, the first two seasons from 2019 and 2021 will remain on Freevee, with the new third season streaming exclusively on Prime Video. The affable crime drama about odd-couple detectives (Elen Rhys and Max Winter) working cases in paradise is a fun watch, wherever it streams. Watch trailer
Live on Peacock this weekend
Coverage begins Friday, August 9, 7 a.m. PT/10 a.m. ET: We’re not calling it breakdancing anymore—it’s just breaking now; keep up. The hip-hop art form, born in the ’70s, has evolved since the days of spinning on cardboard, and now breaking is making its Olympic debut. The women’s (or B-girls) competition kicks off on Friday; the men’s (B-boys) competition is on Saturday. Competitors to watch for: Sunny Choi, Victor Montalvo, Manizah Talash, Logan Edra, Fatima Zahra, and Jeffrey Lewis. Watch trailer
Want more new TV shows?
New on Paramount+ this weekend
Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Paramount+ | Animation, comedy
Series premiere, Friday, August 9: Fans of last year’s gonzo-animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem movie rejoice: it’s now a series! Leo, Mikey, Raph, and Donnie will face new villains and, even more daunting, another year of high school in this 12-episode series that will span the gap between Mutant Mayhem and its upcoming sequel. In addition to the original voice cast (which includes The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri as April O’Neil), you’ll also hear Pete Davidson, Rose Byrne, and Danny Trejo. Watch trailer
New on Apple TV+ this weekend
The Instigators | Apple TV+ | Action, comedy
Movie premiere, Friday, August 9: Director Doug Liman recently told Variety that he “didn’t get a cent” from his hit reboot of Road House for Prime Video earlier this year—maybe he’ll fare better with Apple TV+ and The Instigators. The Boston-set heist comedy follows ill-equipped duo Rory and Cobby (Matt Damon and Casey Affleck) and their failed attempt to rob a politician, which puts them in the crosshairs of the police, the government, and the mob. Worst-case scenario, Liman gets paid in iTunes gift cards. Watch trailer
New on Max this weekend
Season 3 premiere, Sunday, August 11: Sex-and-drugs and high-finance drama Industry returns after two years away, with the impossibly named Harper Stern (Myha’la Herrold) and a new band of graduates fighting for a position at London investment banking firm Pierpont & Co. That won’t be easy for Harper, as she was revealed as having never actually graduated from college and was fired at the end of last season. But as we’ve learned from Suits, a college degree ain’t all that in the corporate world. Watch trailer
New on Lifetime this weekend
Stalked By My Amish Boyfriend | Lifetime | Drama
Movie premiere, Sunday, August 11: I’m not saying that there’s a rogue movie-title-generating robot in the basement at Lifetime, but I’m not not saying it. Anyway: Stalked By My Amish Boyfriend centers on Carly (Leigha Sinnott), a student at a college adjacent to an Amish community. When she strikes up a relationship with Abram (Sam Bullington), a young Amish man out on Rumspringa, things go south quickly when he takes her captive on his compound to become his “wife.” Never change, Lifetime.
New on HIDDEN this weekendNew movie releases available to rent/buy on VOD this week
Despicable Me 4 (2024)
What are Despicable Me movies even about anymore? Since Despicable Me 4 made about $400 million at the box office in a month, there’s probably no reason to overthink it. This time around, ex-supervillain Gru (voiced by Steve Carrell) takes measures to avoid his old rival Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) by moving his family, including baby Gru Jr. (Tara Strong), to a safe house with fake identities. If you’re thinking there’s no way these characters could go unnoticed in a new town, you’re overthinking it (again). Watch trailer
- 13th Summer (August 6)
- 1521 (August 6)
- 500 Days of Silence (August 6)
- America (August 6)
- American Highway (August 6)
- Banel & Adama (August 6)
- Bless Their Hearts (August 6)
- Cedric & Alysia (August 6)
- The Convent (August 6)
- Despicable Me 4 (August 6)
- The Forgotten Battle (August 6)
- Ganymede (August 6)
- The Longest Night (August 6)
- Mama Bear (August 6)
- Marguerite’s Theorum (August 6)
- The Mouse Trap (August 6)
- This Train (August 6)
- Valleyheart (August 69)
- The Beautiful Summer (August 9)
- Dandelion (August 9)
- Duchess (August 9)
- Free LSD (August 9)
- Girl You Know It’s True (August 9)
- This Must Be the Place (August 9)
