MUST-WATCH TITLES FOR AUGUST
AUGUST 3 – HBO’s OBAMA: IN PURSUIT OF A MORE PERFECT UNION
- Directed by Peter Kunhardt (True Justice: Bryan Stevenson’s Fight For Equality, 2019) the multi-part documentary, OBAMA: IN PURSUIT OF A MORE PERFECT UNION, is a comprehensive study of Barack Obama’s journey from Illinois State Senator to the 44th U.S. President, against the cultural and historical moments that defined his political rise. Archival interviews and speeches from Obama’s career frame insights from a who’s who of political experts including Jelani Cobb, David Remnick, Cornel West, Sherrilyn Ifill, Al Sharpton, and Jesse Jackson, as they analyze how race and politics intertwined to lead to the election of the country’s first Black president. All three episodes of OBAMA: IN PURSUIT OF A MORE PERFECT UNION stream August 3 at 9 p.m. ET on Crave.
AUGUST 6 – ANNE BOLEYN *Limited Series Premiere*
- For 500 years, audiences have been spoon-fed a story about Anne Boleyn: the cold-hearted scheming seductress who bewitched Henry VIII into marrying her, before sleeping with his best friend and her own brother. In the ground-breaking new, three-part drama series, ANNE BOLEYN, Jodie Turner-Smith leads a diverse cast in shining a feminist light on her demise. After years of silence and suppression, viewers finally hear her voice. All three episodes of ANNE BOLEYN drop Friday, August 6, only on Crave.
AUGUST 8 – SHOWTIME’s THE L WORD: GENERATION Q *Season Premiere*
- Season 2 of the SHOWTIME drama, THE L WORD: GENERATION Q, premieres Sunday, August 8 at 10 p.m. ET. The upcoming season kicks off in the aftermath of Sophie’s (Rosanny Zayas) decision at the airport as she, Dani (Arienne Mandi), and Finley (Jacqueline Toboni) are all left to pick up the pieces. Meanwhile, Bette’s (Jennifer Beals) personal and professional pursuits force her to reexamine her roots – something Angie (Jordan Hull) also questions and explores in her own way. THE L WORD: GENERATION Q is a revival set 10 years after the original groundbreaking drama series, which premiered in 2004 and ran for six seasons (all of which are available for streaming on Crave). Season 2 guest stars include Rosie O’Donnell, Donald Faison, Griffin Dunne, and Vanessa Williams. THE L WORD: GENERATION Q follows a weekly release schedule, with new episodes dropping Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.
AUGUST 13 – NOMADLAND *Movie Premiere*
- Winning Best Picture at the 93rd OSCARS®, Chloé Zhao’s NOMADLAND is a portrait of itinerant lives on open roads across the American West. Following the economic collapse of a company town in rural Nevada, Fern (played by Frances McDormand, who won Best Actress for her role in the film) packs her van and sets off on the road exploring a life outside of conventional society, as a modern-day nomad. Streaming Friday, August 13, NOMADLAND features real nomads Linda May, Swankie, and Bob Wells as Fern’s mentors and comrades in her exploration through the vast landscape of the American West. Earlier this year, Zhao made history at the 93rd OSCARS, becoming the first woman of colour to win best director for the film, and just the second woman to win the award.
AUGUST 15 – STARZ’s HEELS *Series Premiere*
- The new STARZ series HEELS begins streaming on Sunday, August 15, and follows the story of a group of men and women who chase their dreams in the world of small-town pro wrestling. Set in a close-knit Georgia community, it follows a family-owned wrestling promotion as two brothers (Canada’s own Stephen Amell, ARROW and Alexander Ludwig, VIKINGS) and rivals battle over their late father’s legacy. In the ring, somebody must play the good guy and somebody must play their nemesis, the heel. But in the real world, those characters can be hard to live up to or hard to leave behind. HEELS follows a weekly release schedule, with new episodes dropping Sundays on STARZ.
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HIGHLIGHTS
AUGUST 2 – STREET GANG: HOW WE GOT TO SESAME STREET *Documentary Premiere*
- The new documentary from Marilyn Agrelo (Mad Hot Ballroom), STREET GANG: HOW WE GOT TO SESAME STREET, takes audiences inside the minds and hearts of the artists, writers, and educators who created one of the most influential and enduring children’s programs in television history. Inspired by the New York Times bestselling book Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street, the film focuses on the first two decades of Sesame Street — an experimental and groundbreaking period for the show. Its original creators, Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett, tell viewers in their own words about how “the gang” came together, how they stayed committed to their original mission — fighting educational gaps caused by racism and poverty — through eras of political and social change, and how they approached each obstacle with a wicked sense of humour and joy. The documentary streams Monday, August 2.
AUGUST 12 – STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS *Season Premiere*
- Developed by Emmy Award® winner Mike McMahan (RICK AND MORTY, SOLAR OPPOSITES), Season 2 of the half-hour animated comedy series, STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS, premieres Thursday, August 12 on Crave and CTV Sci-Fi Channel at 9 p.m. ET. The favourite scrappy underdogs of the U.S.S. Cerritos return with exciting new adventures, and Ensigns Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Boimler (Jack Quaid), Rutherford (Eugene Cordero), and Tendi (Noël Wells) must keep up with their duties and their social lives, often while the ship is being rocked by a multitude of sci-fi anomalies. The ship’s bridge crew includes Captain Carol Freeman (Dawnn Lewis), Commander Jack Ransom (Jerry O’Connell), and Doctor T’Ana (Gillian Vigman). STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS follows a weekly release schedule, with new episodes streaming Thursdays on Crave and airing at 9 p.m. ET on CTV Sci Fi.
AUGUST 20 – GODZILLA VS. KONG *Movie Premiere*
- Streaming Friday, August 20 is the hit film GODZILLA VS. KONG, which made history by becoming only the second movie of the COVID-19 era to earn more than $100 million in the U.S box office, and more than $400 worldwide. Legends collide as Godzilla and Kong, the two most powerful forces of nature, clash in a spectacular battle for the ages. As Monarch embarks on a perilous mission into fantastic uncharted terrain, unearthing clues to the Titans’ origins, a human conspiracy threatens to wipe the creatures, both good and bad, from the face of the earth forever. In addition, Crave adds three classic GODZILLA movies including GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA, GOJIRA (AKA GODZILLA (1954), and MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA.
AUGUST 22 – SHOWTIME’s WORK IN PROGRESS *Season 2*
- SHOWTIME’s dark comedy WORK IN PROGRESS premieres Sunday, August 22 at 11 p.m. ET, with two back-to-back episodes. Season 2 picks up with comedian Abby McEnany as a fictionalized version of herself, in the wake of her breakup (and almost out of almonds), as she begrudgingly accepts that she’s too busy to kill herself. In fact, she’s just starting to get her head above water, when a global pandemic converges with a family emergency, forcing her into uncharted territory. Following the premiere, the series follows a weekly release schedule with two episodes premiering Sundays at 11 p.m. ET on Crave.
AUGUST 27 – SISTER, SISTER *Season 1-6*
- Tia Landry (Tia Mowry) and Tamera Campbell (Tamara Mowry) are twins who were separated at birth, with each being adopted by a different parent. One day, the teens have a chance encounter while shopping at a clothing store in the mall. After the families meet, Tamera’s adoptive father reluctantly allows Tia and her mother to move into his home so the girls can be together. But just because they’re twins doesn’t mean Tia and Tamera are identical in any way other than looks. All six seasons of the 1990s sitcom, SISTER, SISTER, stream Friday, August 27.
