What to Watch on Friday: New true crime reports on Dateline and 20/20
See Us Unite for Change (8 p.m., ) - The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) honors and celebrates Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders with special guests, short films and music performed by Sting, Jhene Aiko, Saweetie and more. Ken Jeong hosts. This will air across multiple cable networks: Comedy Central, Paramount, Nickelodeon, VH1, BET, MTV, TV Land and CMTV.
Dateline NBC (9 p.m., NBC) - Keith Morrison reports on Elizabeth Sullivan, a mother of two, who suddenly vanished in 2014. Sullivan was the focus of one of Dateline’s first “Missing in America” profiles. Then, nearly two years later, her body was found in the San Diego Bay — but medical examiners found she had only been dead for about a month or two. Morrison provides an inside look at the investigation to unravel what really happened to Sullivan, as well as an exclusive interview with the person found guilty of killing her. We also get interviews with Sullivan’s friends Calandra Duckett and Nathan Caracter, Detective Kim Collier and more.
20/20 (9 p.m., ABC) - 20/20 dives into the 2007 disappearance and murder of Paige Birgfeld, a devoted mom of three who led a secret life working as an expensive paid escort. Police zeroed in on one particular client, Lester Jones, and after her body was discovered in 2012, they were able to link him to the crime. 20/20 interviews Mike Singer, Jones’ former employer, who insists Jones is innocent; and Megan Lundstrom, a sex trade survivor advocate for current survivors, who provides insight on the sex trade industry. We also see archival John Quiñones interviews with Birgfeld’s family and friends when the case first broke.
Army of the Dead (Netflix) - This new Zack Synder action movie (also in theaters) takes place following a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, and follows a group of mercenaries who take the ultimate gamble: venturing into the quarantine zone to pull off the greatest heist ever attempted. An interesting note: comedian and actress Tig Notaro replaced Chris D’Elia in the movie, following sexual assault allegations against D’Elia, after principle filming ended. All of her scenes were filmed against a green screen.
Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. (Hulu) - In this new original animated series, the megalomaniacal supervillain M.O.D.O.K. (Patton Oswalt) has long pursued his dream of one day conquering the world. But after years of setbacks and failures fighting the Earth’s mightiest heroes, M.O.D.O.K. has run his evil organization A.I.M. into the ground. Ousted as A.I.M.’s leader, while also dealing with his crumbling marriage and family life, the Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing is set to confront his greatest challenge yet.
1971: The Year That Music Changed Everything (Apple TV+) - An eight-episode series exploring the musicians and soundtracks that shaped the culture and politics of 1971. The series is a deep-dive, rich with archival footage and interviews, and shows how the musical icons of the time were influenced by the changing tides of history; and, in turn, how they used their music to inspire hope, change and the culture around them. Featured artists include The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Bob Marley, Marvin Gaye, The Who, Joni Mitchell, Lou Reed and more.
The Bite (Spectrum On-Demand) - All six episodes of this new series are available today. The series follows the lives of two New York City neighbors, Rachel and Lily, as they juggle everyday life, careers, relationships -- and maybe even the end of the world. The show is from Robert and Michelle King, who brought us “The Good Wife,” “The Good Fight” and “Evil,” and stars Audra McDonald and Taylor Schilling in the lead roles.
The Me You Can’t See (Apple TV+) - The premiere of a new docuseries about mental health and emotional well-being from Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry. The series will feature high-profile guests (including singer Lady Gaga, chef Rashad Armstead, NBA stars DeMar DeRozan and Langston Galloway, actress Glenn Close and others) and everyday people, along with Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry themselves.
Some programming descriptions are provided by networks.
