This Sunday, the TV lineup is full of premieres, finales and whodunits. Sharon Horgan leads HBO’s Youth, while Jon Hamm stars in American Hostage. Lioness ends its third season by hunting down international conspirators. The superhero drama Lanterns skips ahead in time to a fresh mystery in Rushville.
Here is everything you need to watch this weekend.
Sharon Horgan’s Midlife Mess in Youth
Horgan, known for Catastrophe and Bad Sisters, stars in HBO’s new comedy Youth. She plays Alex, a divorced literary agent who is re-entering the singles scene at 50. The show opens with two episodes, and Horgan’s character observes that “No decade moves faster than 50 to 60.”
It’s up to Alex’s son is heading to college, which puts pressure on her sex life. Rupert Friend (Homeland) plays Patrick, a desirable friend Alex can’ to determine if the comedy holds up. The show mixes coarse jokes with a melancholy take on middle-age anxiety.
Jon Hamm’s Radio Anchor Crisis in American Hostage
Fred Heckman, an Indianapolis radio news anchor played by Jon Hamm, finds himself caught up in a live broadcast gone wrong when a desperate hostage taker demands to be interviewed during a gunpoint standoff with a mortgage banker. The docudrama is set in 1977, with Giovanni Ribisi taking the role of the hostage taker and Kristoffer Polaha playing the banker.
Fred finds himself under pressure from police, lawyers, and a frantic station manager while trying to prevent an enraged caller from going through with his threat. The show begins with two episodes out of its eight-part run.
Lioness Ends Its Third Season
Taylor Sheridan’s espionage thriller Lioness reaches its Season 3 finale. Joe, played by Zoe Saldaña, survives her harrowing rescue, but the question is who was behind her kidnapping and torture.
The season’s end exposes a dangerous political landscape of secret plots. Secretary of State Mullins receives a reminder that logic must not be applied to politics, “The whole world hates you, even your friends.” Joe’s CIA boss Kaitlyn, played by Nicole Kidman, warns that “One can’.
Lanterns Jumps to 2026
The superhero saga Lanterns jumps forward to 2026 after last week’s explosive showdown in Rushville. The mystery teased at the end of the first episode involves the death of Earth’s first Lantern, Hal Jordan, played by Kyle Chandler.
John Stewart, played by Aaron Pierre, has moved on after rejecting the powerful ring. He is called back to Rushville to help sheriff Kerry Kane, played by Kelly Macdonald, investigate the murder while coming to terms with his own complicated Lantern history.
Nathan Fillion’s Lantern, Guy Gardner, stops by Rushville, and his character treats the entire setup as “bad optics,” a nod to his unfortunate bowl cut.
Trespasses Returns With Lola Petticrew
Lola Petticrew starred in Hulu’s Furious as a damaged and vengeful serial killer. She stars in Trespasses, a four-part drama based on Louise Kennedy’s novel.
The series returns to the period of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, a subject of Petticrew’s breakout role in FX’s 2024 series Say Nothing. The setting is a small Irish town near Dublin in 1975, where Catholic schoolteacher Cushla, played by Petticrew, is drawn to Michael, a lawyer who is married, Protestant and a pariah to both sides of the conflict.
Gillian Anderson co-stars as Cushla’s mother, a woman who turns to alcohol to bury her sense of being let down. The story unfolds amid a harsh world where prejudice, cruelty and subjugation reign supreme.
What Else Is On
Saturday brings several other television events to compete with the main programming. Luke Bryan delivers an exclusive concert on Roku City, the day following the release of his ninth studio album, Signs. Morgan Freeman appears for the first time as a celebrity guest picker on College GameDay, broadcasting from Oxford, Mississippi, before the Ole Miss versus LSU contest on ABC.
On Great American Family, Crossroad Springs finds Willis’ prize blue-ribbon cow gone missing right before the Strawberry Social. The Hamilton-Newman feud sets off a fresh chapter. Over on Hallmark Channel, Garage Sale Mysteries: Murder Takes the Stage follows Jennifer’s book club putting on a reenactment of the Lizzie Borden case, during which someone ends up dead.
Lifetime’s The Ocean Between Them centers on a mother’s frantic hunt for her daughter, who vanished while paddling through a storm off the coast of Belize. The show also includes 60 Minutes, which features an interview with Patrick Clancy, the ex-husband of Lindsay Clancy, whose trial for the murder of their three children closed without a verdict.
The premiere episode of Best Medicine brings a mermaid to Port Wenn. Andrea Martin appears as a resident whose prescribed oxygen leads to a disturbance. The season begins with 2, and the episode airs again Tuesday.
The Weekend Lineup at a Glance
| Day | Time | Show | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 7/6c | 60 Minutes | CBS |
| Sunday | 8/7c | Best Medicine | Fox |
| Sunday | 8/7c | The Ocean Between Them | Lifetime |
| Sunday | 8/7c | Garage Sale Mysteries: Murder Takes the Stage | Hallmark Channel |
Key Facts Box
- Youth: Premieres Sunday, two episodes, HBO
- American Hostage: Premieres Sunday, two episodes, docudrama
- Lioness: Season 3 finale Sunday
- Lanterns: Jumps to 2026, new mystery in Rushville
- Trespasses: Four-part drama, based on Louise Kennedy’s novel
- Signs: Luke Bryan’s ninth studio album, released Friday
- Crossroad Springs: Hamilton-Newman feud reignited Saturday
- College GameDay: Morgan Freeman guest picker, Ole Miss vs. LSU, 7:30 pm/ET, ABC
Our View
This is a strong weekend for streaming and cable alike. Horgan and Hamm are both returning to familiar territory — Horgan’s hot messes and Hamm’s period pieces — but both shows look like they could stand out.
Both Lioness and Lanterns end their current seasons with unresolved questions, and the leap to 2026 in Lanterns allows the series to dig deeper into its mythology. Trespasses, meanwhile, appears to be a substantial historical drama with a strong lead performance from Petticrew.
Weekend viewing includes time for Minutes and Best Medicine, with 60 Minutes and Best Medicine both worth catching. Country fans get a special treat from Luke Bryan, while Morgan Freeman’s appearance on GameDay is a rare extra.
You should set your reminders. The programming on Sunday looks full, with several notable shows scheduled.
Source material: “Sharon Horgan in ‘Youth,’ Jon Hamm in ‘American Hostage,’ ‘Lioness’ Finale, ‘Lanterns’ Whodunit,” TV Insider.
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