Staying home on New Year’s Eve is the smartest idea with new COVID infections have reached half a million people a day. Luckily there’s enough titles on to keep viewers home and safe.
Chief among them is “The Lost Daughter” (Netflix, streaming), Maggie Gyllenhaal’s director debut about a woman who becomes obsessed with a young mother and daughter she sees on the beach. Olivia Colman leads a cast that includes Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson, Ed Harris and Peter Sarsgaard.
The most interesting of the TVNew Year’s Eve shows is the new “Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party Hosted by Miley Cyrus and Pete Davidson” (NBC, 10:30 p.m.) with the pop star paired with the SNL star in a production produced by Lorne Michaels. It’s certainly got the hippest roster of stars, with Saweetie, Billie Joe Armstrong, Brandi Carlile, 24kGoldn, Kitty Ca$h and Anitta, among others.
It immediately follows “2021: It’s Toast” (NBC, 8 p.m., hosted by “Today” stars Hood Kotb and Jenna Bush looking back at the year featuring interviews with Michael Bublé, Savannah Guthrie, ed Helms, Carson Kressley, Loni Love, Howie Mandel, Amber Riffin, Lisa Vanderpump and Al Roker, among others.
It plays opposite the cumbersomely-titled “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2022!’ (ABC, 8 p.m.) an event marking its 50th anniversary as a broadcast, with Seacrest putting in his 17th year in a Times Square that seems unwisely welcoming thousands. Already two of the New York performers — LL Cool J and Chloe — have dropped out, leaving Journey and Karol G.