Bill’s TV Talk Summer Preview ~ TV TALK with BILL CUSHING

CUSHING-june

By: Bill Cushing – June, 2018

There was a time, not long ago, when summer was just a vast wasteland for TV viewers. Reruns as far as the eye could see. Now with advent of streaming services and hundreds of channels, that is no longer the case. These days TV fans are lucky enough to have original programming year round. Here are some of the new and returning shows you should check out this summer.

Castle Rock (Hulu) – This new anthology series from J.J. Abrams is based on themes and characters from the universe of Stephen King. Andre Holland, Sissy Spacek, Bill Skarsgard, and Scott Glenn will star in this series that takes place in the spooky town of Castle Rock. Season 1 will center on a lawyer (Holland) who returns to his hometown to represent a man (Skarsgard) incarcerated in Shawshank Prison. Premieres July 25.

Dietland (AMC) – Based on the novel of the same name, this series takes us into the life of Plum Kettle (Joy Nash) who ghostwrites an advice column for Kitty Montgomery (Julianna Margulies), the editor of a New York teen magazine. The show is narrated by Plum as she sets out on a wildly complicated road to self-awakening. At the same time, everyone is buzzing over news reports about men, accused of sexual abuse and assault, who are disappearing and meeting untimely, violent deaths and Plum may unwittingly be involved. Premieres June 4th.

Jack Ryan (Amazon) – This series based on Tom Clancy’s CIA superstar, follows Ryan on his first mission as he uncovers a pattern in terrorist communication that launches him into the center of a dangerous gambit with a new breed of terrorism that threatens destruction on a global scale. John Krasinski (The Office) steps into the role previously played by Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, Ben Affleck, and Chris Pine. Premieres August 31st.

Yellowstone (The Paramount Network) – Kevin Costner stars in his first regular TV series role as John Dutton, a widower who owns and operates a massive cattle ranch in Montana named Yellowstone. He runs the ranch with the help of his children and together they struggle to fight off the greedy politicians, developers, and local Native tribes that want a piece of the Dutton family business. Premieres June 20 on The Paramount Network (formerly Spike TV).

Sharp Objects (HBO) – This series is adapted from the novel by Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl. It stars Amy Adams as a crime reporter who has just been released from a psychiatric hospital for years of self-harm. She returns to her hometown to investigate the murder of two young girls. Premieres July 8th.

The Sinner (USA) –Bill Pullman returns as Detective Ambrose, this time investigating an 11-year-old boy who has murdered his parents. Carrie Coon (The Leftovers, Fargo) joins the cast. Jessica Biel will not return, but stays on as executive producer. Premieres August 1st.

Goliath (Amazon) – Billy Bob Thornton returns as Billy McBride who, after winning a huge verdict in the Borns Tech case, is reluctantly pulled back into the law when his friend’s 16-year-old son is arrested for a double homicide. Premieres June 15th.

Trial & Error (NBC) – The legal comedy series returns for a second season. New York lawyer Josh Segal (Nicholas D’Agosto) is back and takes on his next big case. Defending the eccentric first lady of East Peck, Lavinia Peck-Foster (Kristin Chenoweth), known for her flamboyant outfits, large hats and hairless cat, and who suddenly finds herself accused of the bizarre murder of her beloved husband. Premieres July 19th.

Also watch for: Suits (July 18, USA), The Affair (June 17, Showtime), GLOW (June 29, Netflix), Luke Cage (June 22, Netflix), Snowfall (July 19, FX)
There you go, those are some of the highlights of this summer’s original slate of programming. There will be no shortage of things to watch when the weather gets hot. Enjoy, and as always, stay tuned!

Bill Cushing
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