Comedians Get Real in Steve Martin Documentary and Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show, 18th Century Shenanigans in ‘Renegade Nell’ and ‘Dick Turpin’ Finale, A ‘Beautiful’ Soccer Story

Steve! (Martin) a Documentary in 2 Pieces

Oscar-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville presents an enthralling documentary profile of legendary comedian Steve Martin, now 78, reflecting on the many phases of his career and life. The first part, “Then,” is particularly absorbing as Martin struggles as a young man in the 1960s and ’70s to find his comic voice and an audience that would relate to his unconventional style. “I often hear, ‘Well, just be yourself.’ But who knows what their self is?” When he lands on his signature persona (white suit, graying hair, physical comedy) as an “overly confident idiot,” with early Saturday Night Live appearances catapulting his “wild and crazy guy” popularity, a superstar is launched. Part 2, “Now,” focuses on his film career, his partnership with Martin Short (on stage and in Only Murders in the Building) and his unexpected sense of contentment as a husband and father.

Jerrod Carmichael: Reality Show

As candid as Steve Martin is in his documentary, he’d never go as far as Emmy-winning comedian Jerrod Carmichael (Rothaniel), who exposes his personal life as an extension of his art in a raw and revealing reality-TV experiment. He never hides the awkward weirdness that he’s playing out his sex life as a gay man, and his estrangement from his family since coming out, to a camera crew, all while performing and hitting the talk-show circuit. In the most bizarre meta sequence, he frets about who to take to the Emmys: his straight best friend, to whom he’s revealed his affections, one of his random encounters on Grindr, or maybe even his mom.

Renegade Nell

Lavishly produced and smartly cast, this rollicking 18^th-century period adventure from Sally Wainwright (Gentleman Jack, Happy Valley) stars Derry Girls’ terrific Louisa Harland as Nell, a spunky young lass who returns to her English village with an odd quirk: Whenever she’s in danger, which is often, she’s possessed by an impish Tinkerbell-like spirit calling himself Billy Blind (Ted Lasso’s wonderful Nick Mohammed) who gives her amazing powers of strength and speed. This comes in handy when she’s framed for murder by a soulless nobleman (Jake Dunn) and branded an outlaw, going on the run with her younger sisters. Frank Dillane (Fear the Walking Dead) is a hoot as her sidekick, a fop who doubles as a dashing highwayman, showing Nell the ropes of survival. All eight episodes are available for binge-watching.

The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin

In the spirit of Monty Python by way of Mel Brooks, this deliriously silly parody, also set in the 1700s, ends its first season with the titular dandy highwayman (Noel Fielding) in an unusually chipper mood for someone trapped in a prison that locals call “Your Annoying Second Cousin’s Wedding” (because you can’t get out of it). While Dick plots his escape, usurper Tommy Silversides (Connor Swindells) crosses the line when he corrals Dick’s gang to rob the beloved local pub The Ruin.

The Beautiful Game

The great character actor Bill Nighy stars in an inspiring sports film as Mal, the manager of England’s homeless football team, recruiting a talented player (Micheal Ward) who lives in her car to join the team as it heads to Rome for the Homeless World Cup, a real-life global street soccer tournament. “Everyone has a reason for being here, and every player has a story to tell,” Mel reminds his team as they get a second chance at life through sport.

NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament

The women’s Sweet 16 round plays through the day and evening in Albany, N.Y. and Portland, Ore., with four games stacked on ESPN on Friday and sharing games with ABC on Saturday. (Breakout star player Caitlin Clark’s Iowa team takes on Colorado Saturday at 3:30 pm/ET on ABC.) The men’s tournament continues on CBS (7 pm/ET) and TBS (7:30 pm/ET), with the Elite Eight games scheduled Saturday on TBS (6 pm/PT) and Sunday on CBS (2: 20 pm/ET).

INSIDE FRIDAY TV:

• Dennis Quaid’s Fallen: A Gospel Record for Sinners (7/6c, UPtv): The actor-musician presents songs of gratitude, redemption and hope from his gospel album with Christian music legend Bill Gaither.
• RuPaul’s Drag Race (8/7c, MTV): Country star Kelsea Ballerini is the guest judge when hot male dancers from the RuPaul’s Drag Race LIVE! show from Las Vegas visit to be transformed into stunning drag queens.
• Moynihan (9/8c, PBS): As part of a series on thought leaders, American Masters profiles the late four-term U.S. senator and diplomat Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who staked his reputation on battling for America’s poor. Jeffrey Wright narrates, with commentary from President Joe Biden, author Ta-Nehisi Coates and more.
• Spermworld (10/9c, FX): A provocative documentary from The New York Times reveals the secret and unregulated world of online sperm donors and their encounters with recipients who’ve taken an unconventional path to conceive.

ON THE STREAM:

• Madu (streaming on Disney+): A moving documentary follows 12-year-old Anthony Madu from the streets of Lagos, Nigeria, to a prestigious English ballet school where his dream of professional dance could come to fruition.
• Is It Cake? (streaming on Netflix): What do you mean, that log is good enough to eat? The comedic competition is back for a third season in which bakers get serious about creating hyper-realistic confections that look like anything but Saturday Night Live’s Mikey Day returns as host, with guest judges including former and current SNL stars Jay Pharoah, Beck Bennett, Taran Killam, Ego Nwodim and Chris Kattan.
• Lisa Frankenstein (streaming on Peacock): Writer Diablo Cody’s homage to Mary Shelley by way of 1980s movie pastiche begins streaming. Kathryn Newton stars in director Zelda Williams’ feature debut as a high-school misfit whose soulmate is a magically resurrected 19^th-century corpse (Cole Sprouse).