Credit: Disney+ALSO SEE: Complete 2023 NFL TV Schedule
All Times Eastern. PBS programming varies regionally.
Wednesday, Dec. 20
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
Disney+
New Series!
This series based on Rick Riordan’s bestselling young adult novels tells the fantastical story of 12-year-old modern demigod Percy Jackson (Walker Scobell), who is just coming to terms with his newfound divine powers when the sky god, Zeus (Lance Reddick, who passed away earlier this year), accuses him of stealing his master lightning bolt. With help from his friends Grover (Aryan Simhadri) and Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries), Percy must embark on an adventure of a lifetime to find the bolt and restore order to Olympus. Notable guest stars include Lin-Manuel Miranda as Hermes, Megan Mullally as Alecto (aka Mrs. Dodds), Toby Stephens as Poseidon and Glynn Turman as Chiron (aka Mr. Brunner). The first two episodes are available today; new episodes drop Wednesdays.
Love Is Blind Brazil: After the Altar
Netflix
This special brings back the main contestants from the first three seasons of Love Is Blind: Brazil to reflect on their lives after the experiment and reveal to the public what has changed after saying “yes” (or “no”). Love Is Blind: Brazil will be back for Season 4 in 2024.
Maestro
Netflix
Feature Film Exclusive!
Bradley Cooper cowrote, produced, directed and stars as legendary conductor/composer Leonard Bernstein in this biographical drama. Described as “a love letter to life and art” and “an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love,” Maestro, which includes Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese as producers, chronicles the lifelong relationship between Bernstein and actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (portrayed by Carey Mulligan). The cast also includes Matt Bomer, Sarah Silverman, Maya Hawke and Michael Urie.
Survivor
CBS, 8pm
Season Finale!
Find out which castaway outwits, outplays and outlasts to claim the title of Sole Survivor in “Living the Survivor Dream,” the three-hour Season 45 finale.
Silent Night: A Song for the World
The CW, 8pm
This documentary, which has become a holiday tradition at The CW, tells the story of the creation and cultural impact of the world’s most famous Christmas carol, “Silent Night.” Composed in 1818 in Salzburg, Austria, the song is translated into 300 different languages and dialects. Hugh Bonneville provides the narration, and the special includes recordings by Kelly Clarkson, Joss Stone, John Rhys-Davies, David Foster, Katharine McPhee, Randy Jackson, Gavin Rossdale, Josh Groban and many others.
The Masked Singer
FOX, 8pm
Season Finale!
See which performer wins the milestone 10th season of The Masked Singer in this two-hour finale event.
Barry Manilow’s A Very Barry Christmas
NBC, 8pm
Barry Manilow is one of the biggest artists of all time, selling more than 85 million albums over his seven-decade career. In this hourlong special that first aired Dec. 11, the singer, composer and songwriter performs his classic hits as well as several holiday favorites including “Jingle Bells,” “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “Feliz Navidad” and “White Christmas” in this holiday special. “I think what we’ve got is the best of some of my hits and the best of these Christmas songs,” Manilow shares. “It’s very entertaining. It’s a real feel-good music show, something that I think we all need right now.”
Remember the Night
TCM, 8pm
Catch a Classic!
This Christmas romantic comedy from 1940 boasts a screenplay by the great Preston Sturges (the last film he wrote that he did not also direct). Barbara Stanwyck costars with Fred MacMurray, four years before their second and more iconic, and much darker, teaming in the classic 1944 film noir Double Indemnity. Here, Stanwyck plays Lee Leander, who is on trial for shoplifting. Assistant D.A. John Sargent (MacMurray), realizing that a conviction against a woman during the holiday season is nearly impossible, manages to get the judge to adjourn the case until the new year. Feeling guilty about Lee having to spend Christmas in jail, John posts her bail, and, eventually, over the course of a road trip from New York City to Indiana, where John takes Lee to spend Christmas with his family, a romance begins to develop. But how will that impact Lee’s impending trial?
Christmas at the Opry
NBC, 9pm
Wynonna Judd hosts this two-hour holiday event that was taped in October at Nashville’s iconic Grand Ole Opry House. The special features an array of Christmas favorites and today’s biggest hits, with performers including Brenda Lee, Kelly Clarkson, Mickey Guyton, Trace Adkins and more.
Thursday, Dec. 21
Whatever It Takes
BET+
Original Film!
On Thanksgiving weekend, five women navigating careers, life and the nuances of friendship bond over the imperfections in their love lives. The holidays bring some of them their greatest wishes and others their most profound losses. Tami Roman, Kandi Burruss, Brely Evans, AJ Johnson and Rayan Lawrence lead the cast.
Dr. Death
Peacock
Season Premiere!
This season of the true-crime anthology series follows “Miracle Man” Paolo Macchiarini (Edgar Ramírez), a charming Swiss-Italian surgeon renowned for his innovative operations. When investigative journalist Benita Alexander (Mandy Moore) approaches him for a story, the line between personal and professional begins to blur, changing her life forever. As she learns how far Paolo will go to protect his secrets, a group of doctors halfway across the world makes shocking discoveries of their own that call everything about him into question. All episodes are available today.
Dr. Death: Cutthroat Conman
Peacock
This documentary ties in with the story dramatized in the new season of the true-crime anthology series Dr. Death. It reveals the shocking rise and fall of Paolo Macchiarini, the superstar celebrity surgeon who ascended to global fame after performing the world’s first synthetic organ transplant, only to be exposed as an international con man whose web of lies extended decades, ensnared many — including those in his personal life — and left a trail of devastated patients grappling with a nightmare.
iHeartRadio Jingle Ball 2023
ABC, 8pm
iHeartMedia will celebrate the holiday season with performances by the year’s biggest artists, including Olivia Rodrigo, Usher, Nicki Minaj, OneRepublic, Jelly Roll and more.
Son of a Critch: “European Vacation”
The CW, 8pm
Mark (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) tries to win back Fox (Sophia Powers) during a school trip; Pop (Malcolm McDowell) revisits his past life as a bootlegger.
The Christmas Break
FOX, 8pm
Original Film!
When couple Jack (Justin Long) and Caroline (India Mullen) travel to Caroline’s native Ireland for Christmas, they find themselves at a crossroads in their marriage.
Miracle in Bethlehem, PA
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, 8pm
Original Film!
Due to some bad weather, Mary Ann Brubeck (Laura Vandervoort) and her recently adopted baby girl get stuck in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, for the holidays. The only room available in town is with the innkeeper’s brother Joe (Benjamin Ayres), a local bachelor. As the two begin to spend time together during the community’s Christmas celebrations, they soon form a bond.
Christmas at Graceland
NBC, 8pm
The legacy of Elvis Presley and the spirit of the holiday season come together in this one-hour music special that first aired in November. Christmas at Graceland features music’s biggest stars celebrating the King of Rock ’n’ Roll, his music and his favorite time of year in an unprecedented holiday special. The special was filmed from all corners of the estate, which is guaranteed to excite the millions of people who have visited Graceland, as well as those who have not.
NFL Football: New Orleans at L.A. Rams
Prime Video, 8:15pm Live
Thursday Night Football comes to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, as the New Orleans Saints take on the L.A. Rams.
Children Ruin Everything: “Expectations”
The CW, 8:30pm
Astrid (Meaghan Rath), set to give birth to her child, and James (Aaron Abrams) look back on when they first moved in.
Dick Van Dyke 98 Years of Magic
CBS, 9pm
This two-hour entertainment special honors and celebrates the legendary career of iconic actor and performer Dick Van Dyke on his 98th birthday.
Lost Cities Revealed With Albert Lin
Nat Geo, 9pm
Season Finale!
“Miracle in the Desert,” the Season 1 finale, finds explorer Albert Lin and his team tackling the brutal heat of the desert and exploring remote mountain caves to reveal the secrets of the legendary Land of Magan.
Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas
NBC, 9pm
Dolly Parton leads this 2022 production, a modern-day movie musical about the making of a network TV special. It showcases the frenetic backstage story and delightful onstage results of her desire to share the unique mountain magic she has always found in and around Dollywood at Christmastime. Throughout the production numbers and rehearsal chaos, Dolly finds herself taking a private journey into her past, guided by her personal Three Wise Mountain Men. The film includes Dolly’s hits “9 to 5” and “I Will Always Love You,” as well as a holiday medley and more. Among the musical guests are Willie Nelson, Billy Ray Cyrus and Miley Cyrus.
The Man Who Came to Dinner
TCM, 10pm
Catch a Classic!
Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan and Monty Woolley lead this famous 1942 screwball comedy based on Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman’s play. Woolley plays the titular character, pretentious and acerbic New York radio personality Sheridan Whiteside, who falls and breaks his hip on the icy steps outside the home of the prominent small-town Ohio family with whom he was supposed to dine as a publicity stunt. Whiteside insists on recuperating in the family’s home during the Christmas holiday, and his overbearing nature, unreasonable demands and meddling in the day-to-day happenings of his hosts bring hilarious chaos to their once-peaceful lives. Jimmy Durante and Billie Burke also star.
The Haunted Museum
Travel Channel, 10pm
Season Finale!
Season 2 of the paranormal series concludes with “The Secret Society Skeleton,” with its scary story inspired by two skeletons that belonged to an Odd Fellows fraternal society, which were likely part of initiation rituals that brought recruits face-to-face with their own mortality.
Friday, Dec. 22
What If…?
Disney+
Season Premiere!
The Watcher is back for Season 2 of this Marvel animated series that takes viewers through the multiverse and introduces new and familiar faces as it questions, revisits and twists classic Marvel Cinematic Universe moments. Beginning today, one new episode will be available each day through Dec. 30.
Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire
Netflix
Original Film!
Zack Snyder (Man of Steel) cowrote and directed this epic science-fantasy event. When a peaceful settlement on a moon in the furthest reaches of the universe finds itself threatened by the armies of a tyrant, Kora (Sofia Boutella), a mysterious stranger living among the villagers, becomes their best hope for survival. Tasked with finding trained fighters who will unite with her in making an impossible stand against the Motherworld, Kora assembles a small band of warriors from different worlds who share a common need for redemption and revenge.
Saltburn
Prime Video
Feature Film Exclusive!
In this wicked tale of privilege and desire, Barry Keoghan plays Oliver Quick, an Oxford University student struggling to find his place. He ends up drawn into the world of charming and aristocratic Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi), who invites him to Saltburn, his eccentric family’s sprawling estate, for a summer never to be forgotten. Rosamund Pike, Richard E. Grant, Alison Oliver, Archie Madekwe and Carey Mulligan also star.
The 25th Annual A Home for the Holidays
CBS, 8pm
The 25th anniversary of this entertainment special features uplifting stories of adoption from foster care and raises awareness of this important social issue. The inspirational stories of these American families are enhanced with music from some of today’s top artists playing at the Bram Goldsmith Theater at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Los Angeles.
Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love
NBC, 8pm
This 2016 film is the second production based on the life and works of Dolly Parton. It finds Dolly’s beloved daddy (Ricky Schroder) scheming to surprise Mama (Jennifer Nettles) with a Christmas gift that he could never afford. Young Dolly (Alyvia Alyn Lind) and her siblings excitedly join in the scrimping and saving in a selfless act of love.
Star of the Month: Cary Grant
TCM, beginning at 8pm
Catch a Classic!
This evening’s Turner Classic Movies Star of the Month salute to Cary Grant airs as part of the network’s weeklong Christmas marathon and features six films, beginning with the holiday-themed fantasy/romantic comedy The Bishop’s Wife (1947), which also stars Loretta Young and David Niven. Following that is the famous romantic drama An Affair to Remember (1957), which pairs Grant with Deborah Kerr. Next is Room for One More (1952), a comedy/drama costarring Betsy Drake, who was Grant’s third wife at the time. Following that is the 1941 melodrama Penny Serenade, in which Grant earned the first of his two Best Actor nominations, starring alongside Irene Dunne. Then, Grant stars with Carole Lombard, who had been most known for her work in screwball comedies, in the romantic drama In Name Only (1939). The lineup concludes early tomorrow with Grant, John Garfield and Alan Hale Sr. leading the cast of one of the first and best submarine movies: the World War II drama Destination Tokyo (1943).
Fit for Christmas
CBS, 9pm
Original Film!
In this 2022 holiday film, Audrey (Amanda Kloots) is a fitness instructor at a beloved but financially struggling community center in Mistletoe, Montana. Things get complicated when she strikes up a holiday romance with a charming businessman (Paul Greene) who wants to turn the center into a profitable resort property.
Homes That Make You Go WOW
HGTV, 9pm
From everyday houses stripped down to the studs and turned into showstoppers to stunning mansions and grand one-of-a-kind spaces, host David Bromstad puts on his diamonds and tours the biggest, most eye-popping and jaw-dropping homes in HGTV history.
Bering Sea Gold
Discovery Channel, 9:05pm
Season Finale!
The reality docuseries concludes Season 17 tonight.
Saturday, Dec. 23
Miracle on 34th Street
AMC, 10:15am
Catch a Classic!
This beloved Best Picture Oscar-nominated production has charmed audiences, critics and the Academy since its premiere in 1947. Its story (which earned an Original Story Oscar for Valentine Davies and a Screenplay Oscar for George Seaton) about a department store Santa Claus (Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner Edmund Gwenn) who claims to be the real thing instantly propelled it into the “perennial holiday favorite” ranks alongside the likes of other classics like A Christmas Carol. A fun and touching mix of comedy, drama and Yuletide magic, the film also stars Maureen O’Hara, John Payne, Gene Lockhart and Natalie Wood in her most famous performance as a child star.
College Football
ABC & ESPN, beginning at 12pm Live
A full day of college football bowl games has Troy vs. Duke in the 76 Birmingham Bowl (ABC), Arkansas State vs. Northern Illinois in the Camellia Bowl (ESPN), James Madison vs. Air Force in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (ABC), Georgia State vs. Utah State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (ESPN), South Alabama vs. Eastern Michigan in the 68 Ventures Bowl (ESPN), Utah vs. Northwestern in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl (ABC) and Coastal Carolina vs. San Jose State in the EasyPost Hawai’i Bowl (ESPN).
NFL Football
NBC & Peacock, beginning at 4:30pm Live
A Saturday NFL Week 16 doubleheader has the Cincinnati Bengals at the Pittsburgh Steelers on NBC, followed by the Buffalo Bills at the L.A. Chargers streaming on Peacock.
Planet Earth III
BBC America, 8pm
Series Finale!
In “Heroes,” the Planet Earth III finale, viewers are introduced to some incredible conservation champions fighting to preserve the future of our beautiful planet. The episode is followed by a behind-the-scenes special following camera crews as they worked over five years and traveled to every corner of the globe to capture astounding wildlife dramas.
Christmas With the Chosen: Holy Night
The CW, 8pm
A young mother and a shepherd boy experience Jesus’ birth; Andrea Bocelli performs.
A Royal Christmas Holiday
Great American Family, 8pm
Original Film!
In search of her big break, a reporter (Brittany Underwood) arranges a Christmas interview with a European prince (Jonathan Stoddard) who is visiting the States. Will her big story become her love story?
Extended Family
NBC, 8pm
Sneak Preview!
This new comedy stars Jon Cryer and Abigail Spencer as Jim and Julia, a couple who, after an amicable divorce, decide to continue raising their two kids (Sofia Capanna and Finn Sweeney) at the family home while taking turns on who gets to stay with them. Navigating the waters of divorce and child-sharing gets more complicated for Jim, however, when Trey (Donald Faison), the owner of his favorite sports team, enters the picture and wins Julia’s heart. Extended Family will begin airing regularly on Tuesday nights beginning Jan. 2.
Night Court: “A Night Court Before Christmas”
NBC, 8:30pm
In this special new episode of the reboot of the classic sitcom, airing just ahead of the series’ Season 2 return on Jan. 2, it is Christmastime at Night Court. Abby (Melissa Rauch) enlists Dan (John Larroquette) to track down a little girl’s letter to Santa; Gurgs’ (Lacretta) gift for Dan isn’t what she expected; and Olivia (India de Beaufort) is haunted by a witness who believes herself to be the Ghost of Christmas Present.
A “Saturday Night Live” Christmas Special
NBC, 9pm
Enjoy two hours of the most memorable Christmas-themed sketches from SNL’s long history.