That’s Rob Lowe under creepy cop’s mustache

It’s Rob Lowe as you’ve never seen him! Who knew that a modified Mike Ditka hairdo and the Brawny Paper Towel man’s mustache would do so much for the too -pretty star of “The West Wing” and “St. Elmo’s Fire“?

Let’s face it: Rob Lowe has always been typecast as Ken to every girl’s Barbie. Not anymore. He stars in the title role in “Drew Peterson: Untouchable” (7 p.m. today, Lifetime) as a creepy, controlling older cop who struts around a small Illinois town like a suburban Casanova. Over the years, he collects four wives. Kathleen (Cara Buono), wife No. 3, dies mysteriously, and Stacy (Kaley Cuoco), wife No. 4, vanishes without a trace.

Based on a true story and filled with real news reports from “Today” and “Larry King Live,” “Untouchable” opens as Drew is bickering with Kathleen and then cheating on her with Stacy. This is a fun departure for Cuoco, who rapidly transforms from a brazenly clueless, husband-stealing hussy to a doting mom and abused spouse. She is the victimized poster- child-bride for Lifetime’s endless effort to warn women against the wicked wolf disguised as Prince Charming.

The game cast includes Catherine Dent as a concerned neighbor who organizes the effort to put Peterson behind bars. Dent starred on “The Shield,” so she knows a thing or two about abusive, sociopathic policemen.

But the movie belongs to Rob Lowe, whose turn as every woman’s nightmare is a real revelation. From the first scene to the end credits, “Untouchable” remains just this side of camp. But I was transfixed by Lowe’s consistently ominous performance. May his acting career flourish under a continuing assortment of bad hair days.

Karl travels to a desert island on the debut of “An Idiot Abroad 2: The Bucket List” (9 p.m. today, Science).

A picket fence existence disguises a couple’s double life on “Scorned: Love Kills” (9 p.m. today, ID).

Vanilla Ice, a white rapper turned punch line, indulges in his real avocation, home renovation, on the new weekly series “The Vanilla Ice Project” (9 p.m. today, DIY).

Fox (WHBQ-TV Channel 13) doesn’t get to broadcast the Super Bowl this year, so it’s treating Sunday night’s NFC Championship Game between the Giants and 49ers (5:30 p.m.) as the next best thing.

In a curious move, Fox is using its sure -to - be dominant ratings to boost “American Idol” (9 p.m.).

And just why it thinks “American Idol” needs boosting is anybody’s guess. You’d think the network would air an episode of “Alcatraz” to give the new show maximum exposure. But nobody asked me.

To celebrate last Sunday’s Golden Globe win for its star Idris Elba, BBC America will air all four hours of the miniseries “Luther” (10 a.m. Sunday).

If Elba was one of the big winners at the Golden Globes, the biggest loser was the show itself. The Globes used to be fun because the A-list crowd was loose and even slightly tipsy. That’s no longer the case.

Part of the pall on the proceedings came from the fear that host Ricky Gervais would ask the assembled to laugh at one of their own. While actors may be funny and pretty, they’re also thin-skinned and not really into jokes made at their own expense. You could tell the room didn’t like Gervais, and people tune in to watch the room, not him.

The audience size for “Downton Abbey”

Health Rob Lowe buries his too-pretty looks as he transforms into the title character of Lifetime’s “Drew Peterson: Untouchable.” on “Masterpiece Classics” (8 p.m., WKNOTV Channel 10; WMAV-TV Channel 18) can’t compare with NFL football, but its fans make up for it with enthusiasm. “Downton” just may be the most addictive and beloved PBS/BBC series of all time.

As on many period melodramas, a premium is not put on action. Events on “Downton” unfold rather slowly, and you can see them coming a mile away at the speed of a horse and buggy. But the languid pace allows more time to ogle the sets and costumes and the characters’ operatic facial gestures.

Tonight: The abbey becomes a recuperation center for wounded officers (naturally). Meanwhile, on the Western Front, Matthew and William become lost behind enemy lines.

Today’s other highlights

The voices of Bruce Willis and Garry Shandling animate the 2006 comic-strip adaptation “Over the Hedge” (7 p.m., WPTYTV Channel 24).

Season 6 premiere of “Classic Gospel” (8 p.m., WKNO-TV Channel 10) features “A Gospel Journey” with the Oak Ridge Boys.

Neil prepares his battle against “The Fades” (8 p.m., BBC America).

John Schneider and Jason London star in the 2011 shocker “Snow Beast” (8 p.m., Syfy). I salute Syfy for treating this movie like the over-the -top joke that it is. On History or Animal Planet, it would be presented as a documentary.

Beckett is on the brink on “Castle” (9 p.m., WPTY-TV Channel 24).

Kenneth Branagh, Zach Braff and Frank Skinner appear on “The Graham Norton Show” (9:15 p.m., BBC America).

Over the Rhine performs on “Sun Studio Sessions” (11 p.m., WKNO-TV Channel 10).

Sunday’s highlights

Scheduled on “60 Minutes” (6 p.m., WREG-TV Channel 3): Jane Goodall.

Hetty is visited by a leading member of the Asian community, who asks her to track down a gang of muggers on “Hetty Wainthropp Investigates” (7 p.m., WKNO-TV Channel 10).

A fairy tale romance thwarted on “Once Upon a Time” (7 p.m., WPTY-TV Channel 24).

Alicia takes a case freighted with religious misunderstandings on “The Good Wife” (8 p.m., WREG-TV Channel 3).

A Roman holiday on “Pan Am” (9 p.m., WPTY-TV Channel 24).