‘The Conners’ to Produce Live Season 4 Premiere (TV News Roundup)

When “The Conners” returns to ABC with its fourth season premiere on Sept. 22, the family sitcom will present another live episode. And this time, ABC is giving viewers a chance to win a virtual appearance as a member of the Conner family in the premiere via a sweepstakes.

“The Conners” previously went live in February 2020 for a pivotal election night episode, during which the various characters reacted to poll news being delivered in real time on ABC News. Then, the cast performed two versions of the episode: one for the East Coast and one for the West Coast broadcasts. They will do the same for this new episode.

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As part of Season 4 premiere storyline, a Conner family member will call each sweepstakes winner for a live conversation discussing how they deal with some of the same life issues that the Conners experience on a daily basis.

“The Conners,” the follow-up series to “Roseanne,” stars John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, Sara Gilbert, Lecy Goranson, Michael Fishman, Emma Kenney, Ames McNamara, Jayden Rey and Jay R. Ferguson. It is executive produced by Tom Werner, Gilbert, Bruce Helford, Dave Caplan, Bruce Rasmussen and Tony Hernandez. The series is from Werner Entertainment.

Also in today’s TV news roundup:

DATES

Netflix announced the second season of “The Baby-Sitters Club” will premiere on Oct. 11. Based on the best-selling book series of the same name by Ann M. Martin, the series follows a group of friends as they start a babysitting business and navigate female friendships in Stoneybrook, Conn. ​​In addition to Kristy (Sophia Grace), Mary Ann (Malia Baker), Claudia (Momona Tamada), Stacey (Shay Rudolph) and Dawn (now played by Kyndra Sanchez), Season 2 welcomes Mallory (Vivian Watson) and Jessi (Anais Lee) to the titular club — after the business picks up more traction. The series also stars Alicia Silverstone, Mark Feuerstein and Marc Evan Jackson. Rachel Shukert, Lucia Aniello, Lucy Kitada, Michael De Luca, Naia Cucukov, Ben Forrer and Frank Smith executive produce. Martin is a producer on the series. The show comes from Walden Media. See some first look images from Season 2 below.

Showtime announced the seventh season of “The Circus: Inside the Greatest Political Show On Earth” will premiere Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. The docuseries is hosted by John Heilemann, Mark McKinnon, Alex Wagner and Jennifer Palmieri, and in the eight new episodes, they will discuss the COVID-19 resurgence, Afghanistan in chaos, President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda in Congress and the Republican Party’s continued allegiance to former president Donald Trump. “The Circus” is produced by Left/Right for Showtime. Heilemann, McKinnon, Wagner, Banks Tarver, Ken Druckerman, Tom Johnson and Siobhan Walshe serve as executive producers.

IMDb TV announced “Leverage: Redemption” will return on Oct. 8. The eight new episodes will include guest stars Drew Powell, Ben Thompson, Joanna Cassidy, Jon Fletcher and Brianna Brown. In this second half of the revival, the Leverage team faces off against a rival organization that embodies the system the team already worked hard to take down — including a man who created an opioid crisis from the comfort of his boardroom and a couple who prefers to deport workers instead of paying them. The series stars Gina Bellman, Beth Riesgraf, Christian Kane, Aldis Hodge, Noah Wyle and Aleyse Shannon. Previously announced guest stars include James Marsters, LeVar Burton and Andrea Navedo. Kate Rorick and Dean Devlin serve as showrunners; Marc Roskin and Rachel Olschan-Wilson of Electric Entertainment also executive produce. John Rogers and Chris Downey are consulting producers.

ABC will premiere “The Most Magical Story on Earth: 50 Years of Walt Disney World” on Oct. 1 at 8 p.m. The new two-hour special is designed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World Resort, taking viewers through the history of the park’s creation through its most memorable pop-culture moments and partnership with the Make-A-Wish Foundation. It will be hosted by Disney Legend Whoopi Goldberg and include musical performances from Christina Aguilera and Halle Bailey accompanied by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as interviews with such actors as Anthony Anderson, John Stamos, Marsai Martin, Melissa Joan Hart, Candace Cameron Bure and Gary Sinise; athletes from Tom Brady to Phil Simms and Doug Williams; filmmakers Kevin Feige, Pete Docter and James Cameron; Disney Imagineers Bob Weis, Mark Kohl and Ann Morrow Johnson; and Disney executives Bob Chapek, Bob Iger and Michael Eisner. The special ​is produced by ABC News in association with ABC Entertainment and Disney Parks Global Content. David Sloan and Sally Conner are senior executive producers and Matt Lombardi is executive producer.

CASTING

“Shark Tank” will welcome few guest Sharks Kevin Hart, Emma Grede, Peter Jones and Nirav Tolia for its 13th season, which premieres Oct. 8 at 8 p.m. Hart is best-known as a comedian and actor, while Grede is the CEO and co-founder of Good American and founding partners of SKIMS, Jones is the sole remaining original Dragon on BBC’s “Dragons’ Den,” and Tolia is the co-founder of Nextdoor. These four guest Sharks will appear alongside the show’s usual and longtime Sharks Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, Daymond John and Kevin O’Leary in various episodes during the 2021-2022 season. “Shark Tank,” which is produced by MGM Television and Sony Pictures Television, gives average people the chance to potentially secure business deals while presenting their ideas to the aforementioned panel. Mark Burnett, Clay Newbill, Yun Lingner, Max Swedlow, Phil Gurin, Brandon Wallace, Cuban, Corcoran, Greiner, Herjavec, John and O’Leary executive produce.

John Carroll Lynch will return for Season 2 of “Big Sky,” despite his Season 1 character, Rick Legarski, being killed off. ABC did not confirm who he would be playing in the new season, but a teaser shown at the Television Critics Assn. press tour featured narration by Lynch commenting on his brother. (It was mentioned in Season 1 that Rick has a twin.) Lynch joins returning stars Katheryn Winnick and Kylie Bunbury and new series regulars Janina Gavankar and Logan Marshall-Green. Season 2, which is run by Elwood Reid, premieres Sept. 30 at 10 p.m.

ABC announced the contestants for “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” Season 2: Jason Alexander, Tatyana Ali, Anthony Anderson, Tituss Burgess, Cheryl Burke, Brooke Burns, Lacey Chabert, Mario Cantone, Laverne Cox, Marcia Cross, Joey Fatone, Vivica A. Fox, Jeff Garlin, Anthony Michael Hall, Melissa Joan Hart, John Michael Higgins, Vanilla Ice, Tara Lipinski, Loni Love, Von Miller, Michael Mizanin, Wanya Morris, Jason Mraz, Haley Joel Osment, Donny Osmond, James Pickens Jr., Caroline Rhea, Andy Richter, Amber Riley, Tori Spelling, Shawn Stockman, Curtis Stone, Jodie Sweetin, Raven-Symoné, Karl-Anthony Towns, Michelle Trachtenberg, Nia Vardalos, Johnny Weir and Ali Wentworth. Pat Sajak and Vanna White host this edition of the show, but on it, the contestants have a chance to win up to $1 million for a charity of their choice. The show is ” is produced by Sony Pictures Television and distributed by CBS Television Distribution. Season 2 premieres Sept. 26 at 8 p.m.

AWARDS

The Television Academy and executive producer Bob Bain announced Debbie Allen, Alex Borstein, Yvette Nicole Brown, Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Tony Goldwyn, Bear Grylls, Brendan Hunt, Paris Jackson, Daniel Dae Kim, Thomas Lennon, Marlee Matlin, Folake Olowofoyeku, Angelica Ross, RuPaul, Roselyn Sánchez and J.B. Smoove will be among the presenters at the 2021 Creative Arts Emmy Awards. The awards will be presented over three ceremonies at L.A. Live, beginning on Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. and continuing with two events on Sept. 12, at 1 p.m. and at 5 p.m. An edited presentation will be broadcast on Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. on FXX. All three shows will be produced by Bob Bain Productions.

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) announced NBC’s “The 94th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,” Baobab Studios’ “Baba Yaga” and “Bonfire,” Netflix’s “Carmen Sandiego: To Steal or Not to Steal,” Stream VR’s “The Dawn of Art” and Tinder’s “Swipe Night” have been nominated in the interactive media for a daytime program category at the 47th annual Daytime Emmy Awards. The winner will be announced on NATAS’ website and social media platforms on Sept. 9.

FIRST LOOKS

Disney Plus released a trailer for Pixar Animation Studios’ “Dug Days” premiering Sept. 1. The new series includes five shorts that follows the life of Dug, the lovable dog from Disney and Pixar’s Oscar-winning feature film “Up,” whose high-tech collar translates his thoughts into speech. Bob Peterson returns to voice Dug; he also wrote and directed the new series. Kim Collins produces. Ed Asner also returns, reprising his role of Carl. Watch the trailer below.

ABC released an extended first look at its new drama series, “Queens,” debuting Oct. 19 at 10 p.m. “Queens” follows four female hip-hop stars in their 40s who reunite for a chance to reclaim the fame they had in the ‘90s. The series stars Eve, Naturi Naughton, Nadine Velazquez, Taylor Selé, Pepi Sonuga and Brandy. The series is created by Zahir McGhee, who executive produces alongside Sabrina Wind and Tim Story. “Queens” features original music performed by the stars at the direction of executive music producer Swizz Beats. The series is produced by ABC Signature. Watch the extended look below.

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