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TV picks: Fox’s live ‘Rent,’ ‘Three Identical Strangers,’ ‘Breslin and Hamill,’ ‘I Am the Night,’ and more

What's new or noteworthy on television in the coming week.

Members of the cast of Fox's "Rent," including (from left, starting with actor in gray shirt) Jordan Fisher, Valentina,and Brandon Victor Dixon, behind the scenes during rehearsals for the show, which airs live on the East Coast at 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 27.
Members of the cast of Fox's "Rent," including (from left, starting with actor in gray shirt) Jordan Fisher, Valentina,and Brandon Victor Dixon, behind the scenes during rehearsals for the show, which airs live on the East Coast at 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 27.Read moreKevin Estrada/Fox
    by Ellen Gray | Columnist
    Published 

Saturday Night Live. Meek Mill makes his SNL debut as the musical guest, with James McAvoy, one of the stars of the Philly-filmed Glass, as guest host. 11:29 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, NBC.

Rent. Producer and University of Pennsylvania grad Marc Platt brings Jonathan Larson’s Tony- and Pulitzer-winning musical to television with a performance that will be live on the East Coast. The cast includes Tony winner Brandon Victor Dixon (Hamilton, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert), Jordan Fisher (Hamilton, Dancing with the Stars), Vanessa Hudgens (Grease: Live), and Valentina (RuPaul’s Drag Race). 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 27, Fox.

Outlander. Fourth season comes to a close, as Jamie (Sam Heughan) tries to undo the wrong he did his would-be son-in-law, Roger (Richard Rankin). 8 p.m. Sunday, Starz.

Three Identical Strangers. Tim Wardle’s acclaimed documentary makes its television debut. It tells the story of David Kellman, Robert Shafran, and Edward Galland, triplets who were adopted separately as babies and grew up not knowing the others existed, and of the controversial secret study that was responsible for separating them, and other identical siblings, in an attempt to answer questions about nature vs. nurture. In addition, CNN’s launched a podcast, Three Identical Strangers: The Science Behind the Story with Dr. Sanjay Gupta. 9 p.m. Sunday, CNN.

Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists. This documentary profile of the late Jimmy Breslin and his sometime competitor, sometime colleague Pete Hamill captures both the New York City era on which each left his stamp and the sheer exhilaration of what they accomplished on deadline. 8 p.m. Monday, Jan. 28, HBO.

I Am the Night. From Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins comes a twisted six-episode miniseries inspired by a story that’s stranger than most fiction. When teenager Fauna Hodel (India Eisley) discovers that the black mother who raised her wasn’t actually her mother, her search for her white birth family leads her into an even deeper mystery involving one of Los Angeles' most notorious murders. Chris Pine costars as a reporter obsessed with the man he believes killed Elizabeth Short in what came to be known as the murder of the “Black Dahlia.” 9 p.m. Monday, Jan. 28, TNT.

Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television. As the second season of the meta-comedy about an actor working with a detective premieres, YouTube’s making the first season, which costarred Samira Wiley (The Handmaid’s Tale, Orange Is the New Black), available for free to non-subscribers to its premium service until Feb. 13. This season, Hansen (Veronica Mars), who plays a version of himself, will be paired with a detective played by Wood Harris (The Wire). Wednesday, Jan. 30, YouTube Premium.

Russian Doll. Just in time for Groundhog Day (and Pop TV’s Groundhog Day marathon on Feb. 2), this new series stars Natasha Lyonne (Orange Is the New Black) as a woman whose 36th birthday party gets stuck on repeat, triggering an existential crisis. More fun than that might sound, it’s produced by Amy Poehler, Lyonne, and Leslye Headland. Friday, Feb. 1, Netflix.

The ABC Murders. John Malkovich stars as detective Hercule Poirot in a three-part adaptation of the Agatha Christie mystery about a killer who calls himself ABC. Friday, Feb. 1, Amazon.