‘Kate,’ ‘Come From Away’ and MTV’s VMAs
Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music platforms this week.
• The upcoming 20th anniversary of Sept. 11 has brought with it a flood of documentaries and specials looking back on the tragedy. Some of what will be streaming, though, are celebrations, too. On the Criterion Channel, a 63-film series salutes New York and its rich cinematic history, from subway thrillers (“The Taking of Pelham One Two Three”) to unsung post-9/11 modern masterworks (“Margaret”). Included here are Big Apple classics like Jules Dassin’s “The Naked City” and Billy Wilder’s “The Apartment,” and filmmakers including Martin Scorsese, Jim Jarmusch, Norman Jewison and Noah Baumbach. One standout, as always, is “Do the Right Thing,” Spike Lee’s prescient and still-potent landmark. Along with the Brooklyn drama-comedy (which was recently re-released in a 4K restoration) are a number of supplemental features, like interviews with the cast and filmmakers.
• “Come From Away,” a filmed version of the Tony-nominated Broadway musical, is connected to two eras of adversity for New York. Irene Sankoff and David Hein’s musical is about the 7,000 people who were stranded in Gander, Newfoundland, when all US flights were grounded after the attacks. A live performance of the production was staged and filmed in May at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater for an audience that included 9/11 survivors and front-line workers. It debuts
Friday on Apple TV+.
• Mary Elizabeth Winstead stars in the brutal assassin thriller “Kate,” streaming Friday on Netflix. Winstead has co-starred in action films like “Gemini Man” and “Birds of Prey” in recent years, but she takes the starring role in French director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan’s “Kate.” In it, her assassin character is poisoned on a mission in Tokyo, giving her 24 hours for revenge. Woody Harrelson co-stars.
Music
• The MTV Video Music Awards will get a dose of “Bieber fever” for the first time in six years. Justin Bieber returns to the VMA stage for an allstar caliber event held Sunday at the Barclays Center in New York. The pop star leads this year’s show with seven nominations, including video of the year and artist of the year. Megan Thee Stallion, Billie Eilish, BTS and Drake are other top nominees. Bieber last took the VMAs stage when he performed “What Do You Mean” in 2015. Other performers include Lil Nas X, Camila Cabello, Chloe, Kacey Musgraves, Shawn Mendes, Olivia Rodrigo, Machine Gun Kelly and Doja Cat — who will also serve as the show’s host. Foo Fighters will receive the first-ever MTV VMAs’ Global Icon Award.
• K-pop sensation BTS are set to appear on a special episode of YouTube Originals’ “Released.” The band will be joined by Coldplay front man Chris Martin on the weekly music series that will premiere on Friday at midnight. An intimate conversation will be held about their shared experiences as musicians and BTS’ inspiration for the #PermissiontoDance challenge. The three-week challenge, which began July 23, had BTS encouraging people to make 15-second YouTube short videos incorporating the international sign gestures for joy, dance and peace. The episode will also feature a “Permission to Dance” music video, which will be remixed by BTS.
Television
• A PBS showcase for short films begins its new season with a trio of projects that explore family roots and how strong their hold can be. “Sing Me a Lullaby,” directed by Tiffany Hsiung, “A Broken House” from Jimmy Goldblum, and “Joychild” from Aurora Brachman are part of “POV Shorts,” airing Monday (check local stations for times) and available at POV. org. Homesickness permeates the multiple prize-winning “A Broken House,” in which Syrian architecture student Mohamad Hafez realizes he must recreate in the US what he’s left behind.
• Crime and punishment is different in small towns vs. the big city. That’s the premise of “It Couldn’t Happen Here,” a docuseries that examines how rural communities and legal systems are affected by violent crimes and burdened by a lack of resources. Actor Hilarie Burton Morgan (“One Tree Hill,” “The Walking Dead”) delves into cases in the six-part series debuting 10 p.m. EDT Thursday on SundanceTV and AMC+. The first stop is Adel, Georgia: Has a wrongly convicted man been imprisoned for more than two decades for a crime he didn’t commit?
• “Lucifer” is coming to an end? The devil you say! But Netflix, which rescued the show after it was canceled by Fox, has cautioned that it’s “real this time.” The six-season journey of Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis), who traded his digs in hell for Los Angeles, will wrap with 10 episodes out Friday. Issues to be settled: why is Lucifer balking at taking over for now-retired God, and how will he respond as a godless world frays at the edges. Ex-LAPD detective Chloe Decker (Lauren German), now Lucifer’s consultant, is along for the final ride.