TV Watchlist: LaKeith Stanfield Kicks Off Spooky Season, 'The Little Mermaid' Splashes Down on Disney+

Plus, the finale of "The Afterparty" Season 2 on Apple TV+ and a brand new season of "Real Housewives" Week of September 2 - 8 This week is all about shows returning, as “Star Trek: Lower Decks,” “I Am Groot,” “Virgin River,” “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” and “Selling the OC” all make hotly anticipated comebacks. Also, “The Little Mermaid,” a lavish, live-action recreation of the 1989 Disney classic, certainly counts as a return. Not that it’s all shows coming back this week, as the most exciting arrival is brand new – the spooky literary adaptation “The Changeling” on Apple TV+. Old or new, this week will do you right. On with the television! The Changeling Friday, September 8, Apple TV+ Source: Apple TV+ Spooky season starts early with this new Apple TV+ original series. LaKeith Stanfield stars as Apollo Kagwa, a used book dealer in Manhattan, who finds the woman of his dreams (Clark Backo), marries her, and soon starts a family. And that’s when things start to go horrifyingly wrong. Based on the 2017 novel by Victor LaValle, which was critically adored and won several literary prizes, “The Changeling” was written for television by Kelly Marcel (“Saving Mr. Banks,” “Venom”) and directed by Melina Matsoukas (“Queen & Slim”), both of whom bring a considerable amount of stylized flair to the series. But it’s the show’s constantly shifting tone, evolving from a seemingly straightforward romance to something deeper and far darker, that will make you come back for “The Changeling” week after week. If this is indeed the retelling of a fairy tale, it’s something bleaker than anything Disney could cook up (see below). This is one of the must-see series of the fall. You just might want to watch with the lights on. [[TRAILER](] The Afterparty Wednesday, September 6, Apple TV+ Source: Apple TV+ The second season of the deliciously twisty whodunnit, created by Christopher Miller and produced by Miller and Phil Lord (whose 2023 credits alone include “Cocaine Bear” and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”), is coming to an end. That means the big reveal of the killer, who this season offed a groom (Zach Woods) at his own wedding. Who is the murderer? What was their motivation? And how exactly did the erstwhile buddy cop duo of Aniq (Sam Richardson) and Danner (Tiffany Haddish) put the pieces together? [[TRAILER](] The Little Mermaid Wednesday, September 6, Disney+ Source: Disney+ Ready to go back “Under the Sea?” Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” is the latest film in their long line of live-action remakes of beloved animated classics. Rob Marshall, who directed the Oscar-winning big screen adaptation of “Chicago” (and is a Disney favorite for “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” “Into the Woods” and “Mary Poppins Returns”), directs this new take on the 1989 animated masterpiece, which now stars Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Melissa McCarthy and Javier Bardem, with Awkwafina, Daveed Diggs and Jacob Tremblay voicing Ariel’s undersea pals. The results are about what you’d expect – overly long, for sure, but exhibiting a visual playfulness and a heartfelt earnestness that are oftentimes missing from these exercises. You can feel that Marshall and his collaborators were really trying to make something grand and great. And whether or not they wholly succeed is almost beside the point. The fact that it works as well as it does is miraculous enough. [[TRAILER](] Predators Wednesday, September 6, Netflix Source: Netflix Narrated by the wonderfully gravelly Tom Hardy, this new documentary series follows five predator species around the world (including pumas and lions) who work to survive in the increasingly catastrophic environments of an ever-changing earth. The official synopsis implores viewers to “experience life through the eyes of cheetahs, polar bears, wild dogs and more of the planet's most powerful hunters as they fight to maintain their dominance.” This documentary looks fabulous and like the very best modern nature docs, highlights both the power of the animals and the perilousness of the planet. [[TRAILER](] The Outsider Max Source: MAX If you want more highbrow spookiness after “The Changeling,” we would be remiss to not mention “The Outsider,” the 2020 HBO adaptation of the Stephen King novel that was primarily written by Richard Price (a famed novelist in his own right), with episodes written by the great Dennis Lehane (who wrote “Mystic River” and “Shutter Island” among others) and episodes directed by Karyn Kusama (“Jennifer’s Body”), J.D. Dillard (“Sweetheart”) and Jason Bateman. Talk about an embarrassment of riches. And that’s before you talk about the all-star cast, which is led by Ben Mendelsohn and Cynthia Erivo and includes Bill Camp, Jason Bateman, Julianne Nicholson and Paddy Considine. The storyline involves a smalltown little league coach and beloved dad (Bateman) who is accused of the murder of a young child. From there, things - like with “The Changeling” - get more supernatural and bizarre. And much, much scarier. [[WATCH](] Source: Disney+ “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” Tuesday, September 5 at 9 p.m., Bravo Season 4 of "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" introduces a new snowflake holder: Monica Garcia. Garcia is an excommunicated ex-Mormon and mom of four who is divorcing her husband for a second time. Angie Katsenevas is elevated to full-time housewife status and will navigate her marriage drama. And former housewife Mary Cosby returns as friend, bringing with her fabulous fashions and quippy comebacks. [[TRAILER](] “I Am Groot” Wednesday, September 6, Disney+ The series of animated shorts, written and directed by the great Kristen Lepore (who also served as the animation director for last year’s Oscar-nominated “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On”), is back for another batch of five installments. What kind of trouble will little baby Groot, the lovable tree creature from the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise, get into this time? It’s hard to say for sure but almost assuredly every installment will end in major “awwwww”s. [[TRAILER](] “Star Trek: Lower Decks” Thursday, September 7, Paramount+ “Star Trek: Lower Decks” is one of the best “Star Wars” shows currently in production, a hilarious and heartfelt look at the crew members whose stories we rarely follow in more serious, live-action shows. And hopefully more people will be watching this season, especially after the amazing “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” episode that crossed over with “Lower Decks” (watch it right now if you haven’t seen it). If you haven’t seen “Star Trek: Lower Decks” yet, there’s no time like the present. This show will make you LOL. [[TRAILER](] “Virgin River” Thursday, September 7, Netflix In the grand Netflix tradition of “Stranger Things,” “The Witcher” and “The Lincoln Lawyer,” the latest season of “Virgin River” (its fifth) will be split up. The first batch of episodes, which once again follow midwife Melinda "Mel" Monroe (Alexandra Breckenridge) as she traverses the remote town of Virgin River while still finding herself in the same sticky situations, will stream on September 7, with the remaining two episodes not streaming until November 30 (!) But don’t worry, the show has already been renewed for a sixth season. Love is in the air! [[TRAILER](] “Selling the OC” Friday, September 8, Netflix Who will buy these giant houses and what will be left of them when they do? “Selling the OC,” the spin-off of “Selling Sunset,” traces the lives of the realtors selling off some of the most desirable property just outside of Los Angeles and the houses that are on the market. This is a good reminder that a hate-watch is still a watch. [[TRAILER](] 2034 Armacost Ave. | Los Angeles, CA 90025 [Unsubscribe](