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David E. Kelley Stages a Broadcast TV Return With ABC's Big Sky

ALSO: Lego Star Wars Holiday Special, The Bachelorette, We Are the Champions, and more.
  •  Katheryn Winnick, Ryan Phillippe and Kylie Bunbury star in Big Sky. (ABC)
    Katheryn Winnick, Ryan Phillippe and Kylie Bunbury star in Big Sky. (ABC)

    David E. Kelley built his reputation as the creative force behind network dramas like Picket Fences, Chicago Hope and Ally McBeal, but after making the move to streaming and premium cable (Goliath for Amazon, Big Little Lies and The Undoing for HBO) he once said he didn't think he'd ever go back to broadcast TV again. Tonight's premiere of Big Sky on ABC puts that notion to rest, although as Primetimer's Jean-Maxime Renault wrote in his pilot script review earlier this year, Big Sky doesn't play by traditional broadcast rules. (It's also a bit flippant in its portrayal of COVID-era Montana.)

    Also today: NCIS and Dick Wolf's FBI shows return to CBS, Disney and Lego join forces for a new Star Wars holiday special, and Tayshia is looking for a "grown-ass man" on The Bachelorette. Here's what's new and noteworthy on TV this Tuesday:

    SERIES PREMIERE: The kidnapping of two sisters in tonight's pilot episode of Big Sky sets off a twisty chain of events as private detectives Cassie Dewell (Kylie Bunbury) and Cody Hoyt (Ryan Phillippe) join forces with Cody's estranged wife Jenny Hoyt (Katheryn Winnick) in search for answers. Watch trailer. 10:00 PM ET on ABC

    SEASON PREMIERE: Gibbs (Mark Harmon) and Fornell (Joe Spano) attempt to track down the leader of a drug ring who supplied drugs to Fornell's daughter on the 18th season premiere of NCIS. Also, the team deals with the case of a missing cadaver. Watch preview. 8:00 PM ET on CBS

    SEASON PREMIERE: The FBI team welcomes a new member, Special Agent Tiffany Wallace (Katherine Renee Turner), as they search for killers who orchestrated a mass shooting at a media company, but OA (Zeeko Zaki) has a personal connection with the case that threatens to cloud his judgement. Watch preview. 9:00 PM ET on CBS

    SEASON PREMIERE: When a hacker triggers a car crash that kills a family of three on the second season premiere of FBI: Most Wanted, the team races to hunt him down as his ransom-ware demands escalate and his ultimate target becomes apparent. Watch preview. 10:00 PM ET on CBS

    SPECIAL PRESENTATION: 42 years after the epic disaster that was the Star Wars Holiday Special, Disney and Lego are joining forces for the Lego Star Wars Holiday Special, a tongue in cheek celebration of the notorious Life Day, which reunites Rey, Finn, Poe, Chewie, Luke, Darth Vader, Obi-Wan and many more. Watch trailer. Streaming on Disney+

    NEW EPISODE: Tayshia's suitors are getting all oiled up tonight on The Bachelorette as Ashley and Jared Haibon set a Grown Man Challenge for the guys. Watch preview. 8:00 PM ET on ABC

    SERIES PREMIERE: The Office's Rainn Wilson presents We Are the Champions, a feel-good docuseries that introduces viewers to competitions ranging from the fun and quirky to the truly bizarre. Watch trailer. Streaming on Netflix

    NEW EPISODE: If NBC's promos are any indication, Kate and Toby's adoption plans may hit a snag tonight on This is Us. Meanwhile, Malik shadows Randall at work, and Kevin struggles to connect with his new movie director. Watch preview. 9:00 PM ET on NBC

    STANDUP SPECIAL: A lot has happened to Kevin Hart since his last Netflix special in 2018. He's set to unpack it all in Kevin Hart: Zero F*cks Given, shot in his living room. Watch trailer. Streaming on Netflix

    SPECIAL PRESENTATION: Barack Obama sits down with Oprah Winfrey for a new installment of The Oprah Conversation, in which the former president discusses his new memoir "A Promised Land." Streaming on Apple TV+

    Mike Attebery is Senior Editor at Primetimer and the author of seven mystery thrillers. Follow him on Twitter at @mikeattebery.

    TOPICS: Big Sky, ABC, CJ Box, David E. Kelley