True-crime podcast ‘Dirty John’ comes to TV
TV Insider is a weekly roundup of what’s happening in the world of television.
Dispatches: Weekly TV news
• Syfy channel has an early holiday treat for fans of “Game of Thrones” author George R. R. Martin. In December, the network is debuting “Nightflyers,” a space horror drama based on Martin’s novella. Episodes one through five will screen Dec. 2-6 at 10 p.m. EDT followed by episodes six through ten, which will run from Dec. 9-13.
• Fresh off her role as an emergency call operator on “9-1-1,” Connie Britton returns to television as the lead in the true-crime drama “Dirty John” (Bravo, Nov. 25, 10 p.m. EDT). Britton plays Debra Newell, a successful interior designer who falls in love with John Meehan (Eric Bana), a manipulative conman. The whirlwind romance leads to terrible consequences for her entire family. The series is based on the true-crime podcast of the same name, which is hosted by and features the investigative work of Los Angeles Times journalist Christopher Goffard. Contenders: Shows worth your time • Shows featuring high school football players may never reach the heights of the outstanding “Friday Night Lights,” but “All American,” (Oct. 10, 9 p.m. EDT) the CW’s new series about an African-American star player who is recruited from his high school in the Crenshaw neighborhood of Los Angeles to join a largely white Beverly Hills high school team, is a worthy challenger. Solid storytelling, along with good performances from Daniel Ezra as Spencer James, and Taye Diggs as his coach Billy Baker, make it a promising new addition to the genre.
• Netflix gives one of the most celebrated ghost stories of all time a modern reimagining with its 10-episode version of “The Haunting of Hill House” (Oct. 12). Based on Shirley Jackson’s 1959 gothic horror novel, the series moves between the past and the present as siblings recall the memories of their family home and the horrific events that caused them to flee it. Expect a gripping psychological drama that delivers terrifying scares.
report Card: a look at winners and losers
Winners: “Last Man Standing” was the Fox network’s most watched comedy on any night in seven years (excluding NFL nights), premiering to 11.5 million viewers in three-day multi-platform viewing.
Biker drama “Mayans M.C.” has been given a second season on FX. The Kurt Sutter and Elgin James show is the top cable series of the year in adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and all key male demographics.
losers: Reboots “Murphy Brown” and “Magnum P.I.” had disappointing premiere numbers with “Magnum P.I.” squandering much of its lead-in from “Young Sheldon” the week after its debut. Both show’s prospects for renewal may be dim if the ratings continue to drop over the next several weeks.