It’s a short week (if you’re in the United States and enjoying the holidays, anyway) but a big TV one. Last night was the new season of The White Lotus, which, unsurprisingly, makes a getaway look like a nightmare; can’t wait to watch more! Also returning is Severance, which continues to build the dread and anxiety (and after such a successful melon party too).
But on to new TV. For myself, I’ll be watching Reacher season 3, which puts him in a scenario we’ve never seen him in yet (and, frankly, if you want to preserve the fun of the first episode, I recommend skipping the trailer). Also exciting: Robert De Niro as a former president in the cyberattack thriller Zero Day, and Peter Parker’s bonkers final run of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.
Here’s all the best new TV premieres and finales this week.
Genre: Political thriller
Release date: Feb. 20
Showrunner/creator: Eric Newman, Noah Oppenheim, and Michael Schmidt
Cast: Robert De Niro, Lizzy Caplan, Jesse Plemons, and more
Just when he thought he was out, they pull him back in. In this case the “him” is former President George Mullen (Robert De Niro), who is pulled out retirement and tasked with finding the people behind a devastating cyberattack. As he chases down the knotted interests of technology, Wall Street, and politics, Mullen is unwavering in his search for the truth — even as his path grows darker and darker.
Genre: (Pre-) Big game
Release date: Feb. 19
Showrunner/creator: Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates
Cast: Will Forte, Izaac Wang, Jo Firestone, and more
The Pickles are stepping up — to bat. They are a co-ed middle school softball team, and it’s the week leading up to the Big Game. Each episode will be picking up with a different members of the Pickles, giving us their perspectives, anxieties, and all they have riding on the championship game (or at least, all they feel like they have riding on the big game).
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man season 1 finale
Image: Disney Plus
Genre: Animated superheroes
Release date: Feb. 19
Showrunner/creator: Jeff Trammell
Cast: Hudson Thames, Colman Domingo, and more
Spider-Man (Hudson Thames) is facing his worst foe yet: a crisis of confidence. It’s particularly bad timing since things are rocky with Norman Osborn (Colman Domingo), there’s plenty of superpowered bad guys running around New York, and on top of it all he’s not having a good time in his personal life either. Now the season is coming to a close — can Spidey find his mojo and save the day?
Genre: Big-man action thriller
Release date: Feb. 20
Showrunner/creator: Nick Santora
Cast: Alan Ritchson, Anthony Michael Hall, Olivier Ritchers, and more
How do you stop a man like Reacher (Alan Ritchson)? Give him a bigger guy to fight. There are the usual details of Reacher season 3’s plot — Reacher is pulled into trouble with an innate sense of goodness; he’ll do anything he can to help stop the bad guys — but the headline news here is they found a bigger guy than Alan Ritchson. The stakes are huge!
New shows on Paramount Plus
Genre: Western drama (historical)
Release date: Feb. 23
Showrunner/creator: Taylor Sheridan
Cast: Harrison Ford, Helen Mirren, and more
It’s still 1923, still Taylor Sheridan, and still the Duttons. The Yellowstone spinoff (one of many in the Year-Named Show Yellowstone Universe) is back at ‘em, bringing Harrison Ford back to our screens. (The small ones — though we’ll see how Captain America: Brave New World does.)
Genre: Legal spinoff
Release date: Feb. 23 on NBC; next day on Peacock
Showrunner/creator: Aaron Korsh
Cast: Stephen Amell, Josh McDermitt, Lex Scott Davis, and more
It’s Suits! Again! Remember Suits? The USA Network show that took streaming by storm several years after it left cable! It’s back — only this time in Los Angeles. Ted Black (Stephen Amell) is switching coasts and learning that West Coast may be the best coast, but it’s not easy.
