‘Saturday Night Live’s 50th Anniversary Party, ‘White Lotus’ in Thailand, ‘Family Guy’ Takes on ‘Top Gun,’ ‘Last Week Tonight’ Returns

Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Special

SUNDAY: Live from New York, as it has been for half a century, Studio 8H welcomes a starry gathering of past and present performers (including original Not Ready for Prime Time players Jane Curtin, Chevy Chase, Laraine Newman and Garrett Morris) for a live celebration of the late-night comedy show. It’s a homecoming for the likes of Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock, Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, Seth Meyers, Jason Sudeikis, Maya Rudolph, Kate McKinnon, Fred Armisen, Will Ferrell, Jimmy Fallon and so many more who became famous on the legendary stage. Expect special appearances from SNL veterans Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, Paul McCartney, Scarlett Johansson, Martin Short, John Mulaney, Dave Chappelle, Peyton Manning, Pedro Pascal, Robert De Niro and many more.

As a warm-up, NBC uses Saturday Night Live’s regular Saturday time period (11:30/10:30c, 5:30 pm/PB) to repeat the very first episode from Oct. 11, 1975, with George Carlin as host and Billy Preston and Janice Ian as musical guests, preceded (or on the West Coast, followed) by a repeat of the terrific Ladies & Gentlemen … 50 Years of SNL Music documentary at 8/7c.

The White Lotus

SUNDAY: Forbidden fruit is a house specialty of The White Lotus, where sensual misadventures of the flesh collide with mysteries of the troubled soul in the most exotic season yet of Mike White’s irresistible travel anthology. Thailand provides a lush, thrilling and menacing setting with a backdrop of Buddhist mysticism, though few visitors will enjoy a Zen state for long. The stellar cast includes Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Parker Posey, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and as longtime friends whose bond begins to fray on a gossipy girls’ trip, Carrie Coon, Leslie Bibb and Michelle Monaghan. Returning from Season 1: Hawaii spa manager Belinda (Natasha Rothwell), who ought to know by now that no one checks into the White Lotus without juicy personal baggage. (See the full review.)

Family Guy

SUNDAY: The nerve! The time period typically reserved for Homer Simpson & Co. has been supplanted until late March by Seth MacFarlane’s jokey cartoon, which opens its 23rd season with an elaborate parody of Top Gun. Peter Griffin (MacFarlane) is the hapless Maverick, wooing Lois, mourning Goose (Patrick Warburton’s Joe) and flying high. Followed by the Season 2 premiere of noir spoof Grimsburg (8:30/7:30c), the Season 5 opener of The Great North (9/8c), where Wolf (Will Forte) participates in an Alaskan survival TV show, and the winter premiere of Krapopolis (9:30/8:30c).

Last Week Tonight With John Oliver

SUNDAY: After his surprise cameo with Jon Stewart on The Daily Show earlier this week, John Oliver returns for a 12th season of the topical satire that has won 30 Emmys since its 2014 premiere. Too bad things have been so quiet lately on the geopolitical front.

All Creatures Great and Small

SUNDAY: The beloved series ends its regular season (followed by the traditional Christmas special next week) with an episode blending humor with the poignant pain of wartime. While James (Nicholas Ralph) suffers a relapse that triggers nightmares of his military experience, brothers Siegfried (Samuel West) and Tristan (Callum Woodhouse) air their grievances while getting smashed on a long walk home. This leaves poor Mrs. Hall (Anna Madeley) overwhelmed on the home front, with the aristocratic Mrs. Pumphrey lending a hand as they deal with clients, a sick vet, a baby and a vat of strawberry jam. Preceded by the season finale of Miss Scarlet (8/7c), where Eliza (Kate Phillips) treads carefully when hired to snoop into the personal life of Police Commissioner Fitzroy.

INSIDE WEEKEND TV:

• Return to Office (Saturday, 8/7c, Hallmark Channel): The Valentine’s vibe lingers in a post-COVID romcom starring Janel Parrish (Pretty Little Liars) and Scott Michael Foster (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) as coworkers returning to work on a hybrid schedule whose paths keep crossing, leaving cute notes as “Ms. Monday” and “Mr. Tuesday” until they can get their schedule in sync.
• For the Love of Chocolate (Saturday, 8/7c, Great American Family): Sweet nothings meet a sweet tooth in a romance that develops between chocolatier Aria (Rhiannon Fish) and a single dad (Jesse Hutch) who comes to her aid during a Masters of Chocolate Festival.
• Have I Got News for You (Saturday, 9/8c, CNN): The comedic quiz show returns for a second season with Emmy-nominated host Roy Wood Jr. supervising team captains Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black.
• NBA All-Star Game (Sunday, 8 pm/ET, TNT, TBS, truTV): The contest, at San Francisco’s Chase Center, adopts a new format, with a four-team, three-game mini tournament, with the first team to reach or surpass 40 points winning each round. Analysts Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith pick their rosters, with the WNBA’s Candace Parker acting as GM for a fourth team comprised of NBA Rising Stars champions. Followed immediately by the prank special Foul Play with Anthony Davis, led by the nine-time NBA All Star.
• Trial & Error: Why Did O.J. Win? (Sunday, 8/7c, Court TV): Court TV anchor Michael Ayala hosts a seven-part docuseries revisiting the infamous O.J. Simpson trial on the 30th anniversary, with interviews including lawyers on both sides of the case, former LAPD Detective Mark Fuhrman and family members of the late Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman.
• Tracker (Sunday, 8/7c, CBS): Colter (Justin Hartley) reunites with retired cop Keaton (Brent Sexton) when a new lead emerges in the disappearance of Gina Picket. Followed by the return of medical mystery Watson (9/8c), with the good doctor (Morris Chestnut) and his team puzzling over a war reenactor who was shot in the head and now believes he’s a Scottish soldier. The Equalizer (10/9c) moves to a later time period, with McCall (Queen Latifah) and her crew suspecting a gang war after a young girl is gunned down during a shootout.
• 90 Day Fiancé (Sunday, 8/7c, TLC): Season 11 of the intercultural dating show introduces three new and three returning couples and a first: a throuple.
• WWE LFG (Sunday, 8/7c, A&E): New wrestling LFGs—legends and future greats—are born in a competition series featuring 16 WWE hopefuls vying to earn a spot on NXT, with coaching from mentors Mickie James, Undertaker, Booker T and Bubba Ray Dudley. Followed by a new season of WWE Rivals (9:30/8:30c) and the new countdown show, WWE’s Greatest Moments (10:30/9:30c).
• Rogue Heroes (Sunday, 9/8c, MGM+): The World War II drama wraps its second season with SAS officer David Stirling (Connor Swindells) attempting an escape amid political tumult in Italy while another captured soldier tries to get back to the regiment.
• Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches (9/8, AMC): Rowan (Alexandra Daddario) meets resistance when she travels to Scotland to find Lasher (Jack Huston), with Moira (Alyssa Jirrels), Cortland (Harry Hamlin) and loyal Lark (Ben Feldman) along for support.