New this week: ‘Ted Lasso,’ U2 and ‘The Boston Strangler’
Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music and video game platforms this week.
MOVIES
— Keira Knightley and Carrie Coon play the Boston Record American reporters Loretta McLaughlin and Jean Cole, who connected several Boston-area murders in the early 1960s to a single suspect who they dubbed the Boston Strangler. The serial killer sexually assaulted and killed at least 11 women between 1962 and 1964. The case has been the subject of many books and movies over the years, but writer-director Matt Ruskin’s is the first to focus on the reporters. “The Boston Strangler” debuts on Hulu on Friday, March 17.
— A new documentary on Netflix, “Money Shot: The Pornhub Story” arriving Wednesday, takes a look at the phenomenon of Pornhub and the accusations that the pornographic website hosted and profited from videos of rape and underage sex. The filmmakers speaks to lawyers, Pornhub employees who were told that “nothing was wrong” and sex workers to delve into the complex topic. “Our hope is that this film generates important conversations about sex and consent, both on the internet and out in the world,” director Suzanne Hillinger said.
— AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr
MUSIC
— Appropriate for St. Patrick’s Day, a whole lot of U2 is in the works. “Bono & The Edge: A Sort of Homecoming, with Dave Letterman” is set to premiere globally on Disney+ on Friday, March 17, the same day U2 drops “Songs Of Surrender,” a collection of 40 seminal U2 songs from across the Irish band’s catalog, re-recorded and reimagined. The Edge has said the project “started as an experiment” but quickly became an “obsession as so many early U2 songs yielded to a new interpretation.” “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” gets a cowboy vibe and unexpected honky-tonk electricity. “Desire” has Bono high in his falsetto against a strummy dulcimer and the effect is hypnotic.
— Maybe some old-fashioned rock is more your speed? Look no further than hard- hitting, riffheavy Theory of a Deadman, whose new album is “Dinosaur.” It was produced by Martin Terefe and recorded in Sweden at Atlantis Studios, made famous by ABBA. The 10- track collection from the quartet of Tyler Connolly, Dave Brenner, Dean Back and Joey Dandeneau includes the rocking title tune, the party song “Ambulance” — with the lyrics “cheap drinks/sticky floors/in my safe place” — and a reworking of the classic song “Just the Two of Us” with a darker hue called “Two Of Us (Stuck).”
— AP Entertainment Writer Mark Kennedy
TELEVISION
— “Ted Lasso” returns Wednesday to Apple TV+ with all the heart, one-liners, and pop culture references viewers have adored from its first two seasons. The Emmy-winning series starring Jason Sudeikis, Brett Goldstein, Hannah Waddingham and Juno Temple picks up a few months following where season two ended. Sudeikis, who is a co-creator of the series, has said season three is the end of this story but has not provided a clear answer as to whether the show could take a new direction, launch a spinoff or return for another season down the road.
— Elvis Presley famously loved comic books and now the late singer is the star of his very own animated series coming to Netflix. In “Agent Elvis,” Presley — voiced by Matthew McConaughey — is still the King of Rock ‘ n’ Roll but also moonlights as a government spy by night. Kaitlin Olson, Johnny Knoxville, Niecy Nash and Don Cheadle also voice characters. Priscilla Presley, who is a co-creator and executive producer, plays herself. “Agent Elvis,” premiering Friday, March 17, is the first adult animated project from the studio behind “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.” The show is violent, profane and features a NSFW chimpanzee, so definitely not suitable for kids.
— A new re- telling of “Marie Antoinette” comes to Masterpiece PBS on Sunday, March 19. This version stars Emilia Schüle, as a teenage Antoinette who is sent to Versailles to marry the future King of France, played by Louis Cunningham. PBS says this “Marie Antoinette” tells the story from a more modern lens, focusing on how the young woman navigated the politics of the French court, pressure to deliver an heir and made her mark on Versailles and history. James Purefoy plays Louis XV.