Cold-blooded cooking: Culinary saboteurs get vicious in 'Cutthroat Kitchen'
Alton Brown as seen in “Cutthroat Kitchen”
All is fair in love and war, and the same may be true in culinary television shows. The competition is fierce on foodie TV, but one series truly takes the cake. Four chefs face the ultimate test of their skills as they go head to head in a new episode of "Cutthroat Kitchen," airing Sunday, Dec. 13, on Food Network.
Late Laughs for the week of December 13 - 19, 2015
Jimmy Kimmel Live
[On "Running Wild with Bear Grylls,"] Grylls and President Obama will trek through the forest together eating roots and berries -- which is basically what his wife already makes him eat.
Divine drama: ABC brings the biblical melodrama of King Saul to prime time
Ray Winstone and Simone Kessell as seen in “Of Kings and Prophets”
New Releases for the week of December 13 - 19
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation
After obtaining hard evidence, Agent Ethan Hunt of the Impossible Missions Force (IMF) is convinced he and his colleagues can finally prove the existence of the Syndicate, a criminal organization the CIA doesn't believe exists. Their plans to expose the enterprise backfire, however, and the IMF is disbanded and absorbed by the CIA. After a warning from IMF Field Ops Director William Brandt (Renner), Hunt manages to evade capture, but is forced back to square one of his investigation. After months of getting nowhere, he recruits former colleague Benji Dunn (Pegg) to help, and what follows is an action-packed odyssey that rocks the global political system to its core.
Director: Christopher McQuarrie. Stars: Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, Jeremy Renner, Sean Harris, Rebecca Ferguson. 2015. 131 min. Action.
Fantastic Four
Since childhood, Reed Richards (Teller) and Ben Grimm (Bell) have been working on building a teleporter. The talented pair catch the eye of Franklin Storm (Cathey), who invites them to work with him, his children -- Sue (Mara) and Johnny (Jordan) -- and his protégé, Victor Von Doom (Kebell) at their lab. The team uses the teleporter to embark on an expedition to an alternate dimension, but disaster strikes, and Von Doom is left behind, abandoned in the strange world. The surviving four return with incredible superpowers and are forced to rebuild their teleporter so the government can harness this alternate dimension for its own ends. When they return to the alternate dimension, they find Von Doom -- now encased in metal and dead set on eradicating humanity. The four must then learn to use their powers to stop him.
Director: Josh Trank. Stars: Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara, Jamie Bell, Toby Kebbell, Reg E. Cathey. 2015. 100 min. Action.
Ted 2
In an attempt to save their marriage, Ted (MacFarlane) and his wife, Tami-Lynn (Barth), decide to have a kid. But since Ted is literally a stuffed bear, they can't do it the normal way. After Ted's best friend, John (Wahlberg), offers to donate his sperm, they learn that Tami-Lynn is infertile, leading them to look into adoption. During the adoption process, however, the state begins to question Ted's status as a human, resulting in the loss of his job and annulment of his marriage. Ted, John and Tami-Lynn then go to court to prove that Ted isn't just a stuffed bear, but a person as well.
Director: Seth MacFarlane. Stars: Seth MacFarlane, Mark Wahlberg, Jessica Barth, Amanda Seyfried, Giovanni Ribisi, Morgan Freeman. 2015. 115 min. Comedy.
Blood & Oil, on ABC
After a tumultuous first season of twists and turns, oil baron Hap Briggs (Don Johnson) and his wife, Carla (Amber Valletta), sign off in this season finale. Hap has been challenged by Billy (Chace Crawford), an ambitious young man determined to cash in on the oil boom.
Recaps for the week of December 7 - 11
Tyler Christopher as seen in "General Hospital"
The Bold and the Beautiful
Ivy gets electrocuted during an argument with Steffy, and suspicions begin to grow when the Forresters and Spencers learn of the incident. Liam accidentally overhears Steffy make a shocking confession to an unconscious Ivy. Steffy worries about where she stands with Liam when he confronts her about Ivy. Meanwhile, Wyatt tears into Thomas for being in the middle of the storm between him and Ivy. Caroline and Ridge also call Thomas out on his involvement in the Ivy situation. Wyatt confesses his true feelings for Ivy while sitting vigil at her bedside. Carrying Rick and Maya's child begins to get in the way of Nicole's budding relationship with Zende. Liam grows concerned about something he learns while at the hospital. Steffy is stunned when she receives word that a restraining order has been issued against her.
Days of Our Lives
Abigail and Chad desperately try to escape the cabin as it burns down around them. After JJ and Lani seek out Ben, Abigail asks him what he did with her baby. Later, Chad tries to comfort Abigail as she tries to put her life back together. After making an unexpected announcement to Roman, Hope grills Dr. Malcolm. Hope makes a deal with Dr. Malcolm, but their arrangement takes a surprising turn. Philip returns to Salem with big plans for Titan, but Brady shares his concerns about Philip with Theresa. Kate and Eduardo get to know one another better. John tries to get information about Winterthorne Academy from Eduardo. Meanwhile, Andre plans to use Belle to get to Sami. Steve and Kayla make love and plan for the future, but they're unaware of the new threat to their relationship.
General Hospital
Sonny has reason to hope that he could win back Avery. Sam confronts Liz with her suspicions, and soon breaks some shocking news to Jason. Jason then confronts Liz about her duplicity, and is devastated when he learns the truth. Meanwhile, Hayden tells Nikolas about her life before Port Charles. Jason brings Sonny up to speed on recent events, while Liz and Nikolas prepare to deal with the fallout. Ava struggles with jealousy when she sees Paul with a date. Sabrina helps Patrick reach a decision about his future. Olivia gives Dante a piece of her mind. Lulu turns to an unexpected source to deal with Valerie.
The Young and the Restless
Ashley tries to get Adam to reveal what Victor is holding over him, promising not to spill his secret if he works with her, but Adam has doubts because of their history. Nick begs Sage not to keep pushing him away. Marisa pulls Luca into a kiss in an attempt to get more information about their daughter, but Luca pulls away. At the same time, Noah enlists Kevin's help in getting some dirt on Luca. Adam assures Chelsea that he can protect Jack by working with Victor. Happy that Dylan has become a content family man, Paul helps him with getting an early Christmas present for Sharon. Meanwhile, Sharon confides in Dr. Anderson her fear that she'll lose her baby. Lily is optimistic that she and Cane can work things out, but he tears into her at the GCAC and she runs off crying. Devon confronts Cane for treating his sister that way. Ashley tries to end the feud between Newman Enterprises and Jabot once and for all by striking a deal with Victor.
Closer to home: 'The Expanse' brings sci-fi back into our own solar system
Thomas Jane, Shohreh Aghdashloo and Steven Strait star in “The Expanse”
Humans have always had a penchant for exploring -- from the depths of the ocean to the vastness of the universe, we want to know what's out there. Space exploration has come a long way as technologies have advanced and evolved, which makes it easy to dream of what waits for us beyond our solar system.
Q: I'm just catching up on the British crime show "Luther," and I recognize the actor who plays Ian Reed, one of Luther's fellow inspectors, in the first season. What else has he been in?
Steven Mackintosh is a well-established British actor, but he's not as well known over here.
He's done quite a few TV series, but since "Luther's" the only one that made any kind of splash in North America, it's unlikely you know him from any of those. It's more likely you know him from one of his many diverse film roles.
Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors, on NBC
In Tennessee's Great Smokey Mountains in 1955, the close-knit Parton family struggles to overcome tragedy in this premiere. A story about the early life of Dolly Parton, the film stars Alyvia Alyn Lind as a young Dolly, Jennifer Nettles as her mother and Rick Schroeder as her father.
Q: Has Donald Sutherland ever appeared in anything with his son Kiefer?
As a matter of fact, the gravel-voiced Sutherland boys have appeared in three films together, including Kiefer's first film and his most recent one.
Kiefer was just 17 years old when his dad brought him on to the set of 1983's "Max Dugan Returns" for the coolest ever take-your-kid-to-work day. The young Sutherland played a very small role in that film, which also has the honor of being the big-screen debut of another '80s heartthrob, Matthew Broderick.