Weekend Preview: ‘Big Little Lies’ And ‘Black Mirror’ Return, And A Hilary Swank Movie Comes To Netflix

Big Little Lies (Sunday, HBO 9:00 p.m.) — The exceptional ensemble cast (Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz, and more) returns with newcomer Meryl Streep, who’s doing everything possible to shake up the Monterey Five’s upper-crust drama even more. The lies are bigger and bolder this time around, and the show is even juicier and more watchable with more Emmy nominations surely coming down the road.

Black Mirror: Season 5 (Friday, Netflix series) — Technically, this new batch of episodes dropped on Wednesday, but there’s plenty of time to catch up this weekend as well as check out our ranking of all the episodes. This season only drops three new stories, and the most riveting one doesn’t star Miley Cyrus but Topher Grace, who plays a tech guru that strongly resembles Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, and that’s only the beginning of this twisty tale.

I Am Mother (Friday, Netflix film) — This sci-fi thriller follows Hilary Swank’s arrival as a stranger who shakes up the world of a teenage girl (Clara Ruggard), who has only known the truth that she’s learned from Mother (Rose Byrne), a robot that’s aiming to help Earth repopulate after an extinction event.

The Chef Show (Friday, Netflix series) — The journey of cooking revolves as much around friends and family as it does around food. Jon Favreau comes together in this series with Chef Roy Choi (which obviously follows their Chef movie) to share new culinary avengers with a host of guests, including the MCU’s Gwyneth Paltrow, Robert Downey Jr, Tom Holland, Kevin Feige, and the Russo brothers, as well as Robert Rodriguez and more.

The Black Godfather (Friday, Netflix documentary) – This project charts the unlikely rise of Clarence Avant, the trailblazing music executive who’s honored through interviews with Snoop Dogg, P. Diddy, Lionel Richie, Suzanne de Passe, David Geffen, Jerry Moss, Cicely Tyson, and Jamie Foxx.

Armistead Maupin’s Tales Of The City (Friday, Netflix limited series) — Laura Linney and Ellen Page star in this new chapter for the familiar, beloved story. Page plays Shawna, the daughter of Linney’s Mary Ann, and the two reunite after Mary Ann’s midlife crisis brings her back to the wild whirl of San Francisco.

Here’s the rest of this weekend’s notable programming.

Beat Shazam (Friday, FOX 8:00 p.m.) — Jamie Foxx is still hosting this frenetic reality show, and in this episode, beauty queens and sanitation workers square off with a married couple.

Whistleblowers (Friday, CBS 8:00 p.m.) — An ex-SeaWorld trainer experiences a change of heart after realizing that the forced captivity of the animals destroyed his idyllic childhood view of the park.

Xy Chelsea (Friday, Sho 9:00 p.m.) — Whistle-blower Chelsea Manning appears in this documentary series that includes interviews and a behind-the-scenes glimpse, which have both been filmed over the course of two years.

Real Time with Bill Maher (Friday, HBO 10:00 p.m.) — Andrew Lang and Bret Easton Ellis are interview guests while Rep. Katie Porter, Charles Blow, and Clint Watts fill out the roundtable.

The 73rd Annual Tony Awards (Sunday, CBS 8:00 p.m.) — James Corden acts as the host of Radio City Music Hall while Hadestown and Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations lead the nominations.

Luther (Sunday, BBC 8:00 p.m.) — Idris Elba’s troubled detective continues to find himself not so different than those pesky criminals that he pursues.

Fear The Walking Dead (Sunday, AMC 9:00 p.m.) — A member of the team goes missing during a mission while Morgan and Alicia encounter a survival and hear of new walkers.

Billions (Sunday, Showtime 9:00 p.m.) — Dynamics are morphing as Axe faces a major decision, and Connerty seeks the truth.

NOS4A2 (Sunday, AMC 10:00 p.m.) — Zachary Quinto’s Manx goes looking for the Shorter Way while Vic seeks answers from Maggie but finds questions.

The Chi (Sunday, Showtime 10:00 p.m.) — Brandon and Emmett are scheming, and Ronnie must cope with his actions’ consequences while Kevin’s in trouble with his mother.

Last Week With John Oliver (Sunday, HBO 11:00 p.m.) — John Oliver is back with a whole new set of targets. Who won’t he roast this week