What's New on TV, Netflix, Digital, and DVD/Blu-ray This Week: August 22-28
At a loss for what to watch this week? From new TV, we've got you covered.
New Video on Demand, Rental Streaming, and Digital
"The Jungle Book"
Disney's live-action adventure charmed critics and audiences on its way to nearly $1 billion at the global box office. Now you can watch Jon Favreau's epic at home, via Digital HD download Tuesday, August 23, and then on Blu-ray/DVD/On Demand next Tuesday, August 30. Bonus features on the Blu-ray and Digital versions include "The Jungle Book" Reimagined, with Favreau, producer Brigham Taylor and visual effects supervisor Robert Legato discussing the making of the film; "I Am Mowgli," following the journey of 12-year-old Neel Sethi, who was selected out of thousands to play Mowgli; "King Louie's Temple: Layer by Layer," on the creation of the musical number; and audio commentary with director Jon Favreau.
"Floyd Norman: An Animated Life"
Speaking of Disney and "The Jungle Book," this feel-good documentary takes viewers through the life and career of Disney legend Floyd Norman. Here's more background: "Hired as the first African-American at Disney in 1956, Floyd worked on such classics as 'Sleeping Beauty' and '101 Dalmations,' to name a few. In 1967, he was hand-picked by Walt Disney to join the story team on 'The Jungle Book.' He would later work at Hanna Barbera on many classic cartoons, including 'Scooby Doo.' His talents would later take him to Pixar to work on 'Toy Story 2' and 'Monsters, Inc.' But on Mr. Norman's 65th birthday in 2000, Disney HR force-retired him. He struggled with Disney's decision and refused to leave his 'home.'" Get the full story in theaters, On Demand, and on Digital HD August 26.
"Looking: The Movie"
After two seasons on HBO, "Looking" found closure in this TV movie, which is available on Digital HD August 22. Here's the story: "The movie picks up when Patrick, who has been living in Denver for nearly a year, returns to San Francisco for the first time to celebrate the wedding of old friends. In the process, he must face the unresolved relationships he left behind and make difficult choices about what's truly important to him as he finds himself still drawn to former flame Richie (Raúl Castillo), while being vexed by memories of his crash-and-burn relationship with his former boss Kevin (Russell Tovey)." The release comes with the extras "Farewell to Looking" and "Looking: The Movie Cast Featurette."
New on DVD and Blu-ray
"The Walking Dead" Season 6
Remember when Rick Grimes's biggest problem was figuring out how to deal with those walkers in the quarry? That plan went about as well as most of Rick's plans do, and you can rewatch all 16 episodes of Season 6 when they arrive on DVD and Blu-ray August 23. Bonus features include audio commentaries, deleted scenes, In Memoriam, The Making of "The Walking Dead," 601: Out of The Quarry, Guts & Glory: The Death of Nicholas, Strength in Bonds, Negan: Someone to Fear, The Face of Death: Iconic Walkers of The Season, Inside "The Walking Dead" (DVD only), and Episode 616: Last Day On Earth — The Extended Version (Blu-ray only). That last one, the extended finale episode, allows Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Negan to give his epic monologue with all of the f-bombs intact. Season 7 premieres October 23, but these bonus features should give you enough to chew on for the next two months.
"Roots"
The powerful 2016 re-imagining of "Roots" -- based on the Alex Haley novel, and inspired by the breakthrough 1977 miniseries -- arrives on Blu-ray/DVD August 23. The four-part miniseries stars Malachi Kirby, Regé-Jean Page, Forest Whitaker, Laurence Fishburne, Tip "T.I. Harris, Mekhi Phifer, Anna Paquin, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, and Matthew Goode. The Blu-ray and DVD both feature the documentary ""Roots: A History Revealed."
Here's an exclusive sneak peek of that documentary bonus feature:
"The Huntsman: Winter's War"
Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Jessica Chastain, and Emily Blunt star in this story set before "Snow White and the Huntsman." It's available on DVD, Blu-ray, and On Demand August 23, and bonus features include a gag reel, deleted scenes, feature commentary, a making-of featurette, and a special all-new extended edition of the adventure.
"Castle" Season 8
The final season of "Castle" arrives on disc August 23. Say goodbye to Castle (Nathan Fillion) and Beckett (Stana Katic) all over again by binge-watching all 22 episodes. Bonus feature include bloopers, deleted scenes, "Cool Boys" audio commentary with Nathan Fillion and Adam Baldwin; "Heartbreaker" audio commentary with Jon Huertas, Seamus Dever, and writer Barry O'Brien; and "The Great Escape," where "the cast of 'Castle' are put to the test in an escape room to see if they have honed their detective skills after all these years on 'Castle.' Can they work together to identify suspects, solve the mystery and escape the room?" Sounds fun!
"Clown"
Pennywise isn't the only clown to fear. This horror film from producer Eil Roth and director Jon Watts ("Spider-Man: Homecoming") tells the story of a loving father who wears a clown costume and makeup to perform at his son's 6th birthday -- only to discover that the outfit won't come off, and it also changes his personality in a terrible way. Total nightmare! "Clown," starring Laura Allen, Andy Powers, and Peter Stormare, is out on DVD and Blu-ray August 23.
"Dawn of the Croods" Season 2
The original First Family is back for Season 2 of Dreamworks's family friendly comedy, starting Friday, August 26 on Netflix. "Watch as Eep, Thunk, Grug, Ugga, Sandy and Gran encounter many new modern-day problems for the first time in history as they navigate life in the prehistoric Croodacious Era! Eep joins the first Scream-Leading team, sets up the first underground dance club, and takes up death-guarding at the watering hole; Grug tries to improve his hunting skills through the introduction of math and convinces the family to go on the first vacation; Thunk invents ventriloquism for the first-ever stand-up comedy show and tries the new fad, Slateboarding, with Eep."
Check out this exclusive clip from the new season, with the Croods meeting the first skateboarders, er, slateboarders:
"The Road"
Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee star as a father and son trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic society in this spare, savage 2009 drama based on the amazing novel by Cormac McCarthy. Stream it on Netflix starting August 25.
"Once Upon a Time" Season 5
OUAT just came out on DVD last week, but if you're more interested in streaming it on Netflix, you can watch all 23 episodes at once starting August 26. Season 6 is scheduled to start September 25, with new charactes including Aladdin, Jafar, Princess Jasmine, and more.
"XOXO"
Sarah Hyland, Graham Phillips, Chris D'Elia, Hayley Kiyoko, Brett DelBuono, and Ryan Hansen star in this coming-of-age ensemble film about six strangers whose lives collide in one crazy night at XOXO, the biggest EDM festival in America. At the center of it all is Ethan (Graham Phillips), a young DJ who gets a last minute slot to perform at XOXO after his tracks go viral online days before the festival.
TV Worth Watching
"The Night Of" (Sunday on HBO at 9 p.m.)
HBO's fantastic, addictive crime drama ends its eight-episode season on August 28. That is a crime on its own. So many mediocre shows go on for 20-something episodes a year and we only get eight from Riz Ahmed and John Turturro. At least the season finale, "The Call of the Wild," is supersized at 1 hour, 45 minutes. According to the synopsis, "John Stone (Turturro) finds himself in the spotlight thanks to a controversy enveloping Nasir "Naz" Khan's (Ahmed) defense team." Hopefully we also get the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, about what really happened that night. And no matter what happened then, what's next for Naz? He will never be the same.
"MTV Video Music Awards" (Sunday on MTV at 9 p.m.)
Who run the world? Queen Bey, of course. She is leading the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards pack with 11 nominations, followed by Adele with eight nods. Find out who'll win the most VMAs and, more importantly, who will do something crazy and launch Monday's watercooler discussion, when the show airs live from New York's Madison Square Garden on August 28. Check out the nominees and vote here.
"The Strain" (Sunday on FX at 10 p.m.)
The third season of FX's horror drama begins August 28. Ten episodes are ahead, and the premiere, called "New York Strong," has this synopsis: "The strigoi are evolving, becoming faster. Smarter. Eph (Corey Stoll) struggles to improve his failing bioweapon while trying to work through the emotional fallout of the abduction of his son, Zack (Max Charles). As Setrakian (David Bradley) and Quinlan (Rupert Penry-Jones) attempt to crack the Lumen's deepest-held secrets, Fet (Kevin Durand) helps a Navy SEAL team in a deadly mission: search for the Master through the underground tunnels of New York."
"RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race" (Thursday on Logo at 8 p.m.)
Yas, queens, the second season of the "RuPaul's Drag Race" spinoff premieres Thursday, August 25. This season has 10 returning contestants from Season 2-Season 7, competing to be inducted into the "Drag Race Hall of Fame." This season's new twist has the two best performing queens "Lip-sync for their Legacy," with the lip-sync winner choosing which queen gets eliminated.
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