Welcome to the weekend edition of What’s On. Here are the big things happening on TV from Friday, Dec 15 to Sunday, Dec 17. All times are Eastern. [Note: The weekly edition of What’s On publishes on Sundays.]
1. Your mindless holiday binge is here thanks to Reacher
Prime Video, Friday, 12:01 a.m.: Prime Video’s spy universe of sorts is hanging tight with Reacher. The drama, based on Lee Child’s novels, is back for season two with Alan Ritchson as Jack Reacher. In the new episodes, Jack reconnects with his army mates after he gets a coded message from one of them about some mysterious murders. The cast includes Malcolm Goodwin, Willa Fitzgerald, Bruce McGill, and Maria Sten.
2. Kate McKinnon punches back in at SNL
NBC, Saturday, 11:30 p.m.: Saturday Night Live started season 49 in October with former cast member Pete Davidson as host, and fittingly the final episode of 2023 brings Kate McKinnon back to Studio 8H. After exiting the show as a cast member in May, the Barbie actor returns as host with musical guest Billie Eilish. Look out for The A.V. Club’s recap on Sunday.
3. British comedy Such Brave Girls makes its way to Hulu
Hulu, Friday, 12:01 a.m.: Kat Sadler’s semi-autobiographical BBC One comedy Such Brave Girls centers on vain, heavily in debt sisters Josie (Sadler) and Billie (Lizzie Davidson) as they struggle to navigate life with the help of their single mother, Deb (Louise Brealey).
4. Carol & The End Of The World begins
Netflix, Friday, 3:01 a.m.: Created by Community writer Dan Guterman, Carol & The End Of The World is an animated series with a voice cast that includes Martha Kelly, Beth Grant, Bridget Everett, and Mel Rodriguez. The existential comedy follows Kelly’s titular character, seemingly the only person unaffected by Earth’s approaching cataclysmic collision, as she finally chooses to chase her dreams.
5. Mark Wahlberg leads The Family Plan
Apple TV+, Friday, 12:01 a.m.: The Family Plan is a dramedy starring Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Monaghan, Maggie Q, Ciaran Hinds, and Zoe Colletti that chronicles former assassin Dan Morgan, whose past catches up to him, forcing him to escape to Las Vegas with his clueless wife and children.
6. Leo Reich hits HBO
HBO, Saturday, 10 p.m.: Comedian and writer Leo Reich makes the most of his first HBO special, Literally Who Cares, which he claims features “twenty-first-century cynicism and the late-capitalist corruption of the queer aesthetic.” The stand-up special treads the line between comedy and performance art as Reich blends songs, personal anecdotes, and jokes.