There’s been nothing quite like Nathan Fielder’s latest contrivance, “The Rehearsal” (HBO, 11 p.m.), which goes well beyond his own revered “Nathan for You” — and even “How to with John Wilson,” which he produces — to make a series in which he vows to hall people get over the most challenging moments of their lives by helping them rehearse it over and over — with actors, and on sets that painstakingly reproduce where the scene will take place (the difference here, make no mistake, is HBO money).
The ever-nervous Fielder has to do it himself — rehearsing to meet the first guy who signs up for his services. But viewers will be challenged too, as to how far he’s going to spy on regular people to get the details right for every rehearsal. Along the way, he finds details about the human psyche that are pretty fascinating as well as reliably funny.
Dakota Johnson stars in what’s said to be an especially wrongheaded adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Persuasion” (Netflix, streaming) — so bad it might be fun to watch for that reason. Cosmo Jarvis, Henry Golding and Richard E. Grant also star.
The first movie made for the new, free ad-supported streaming service, “Love Accidentally” (Amazon Freevee, streaming) is a rom-com starring Brenda Song, Aaron O’Connell and Denise Richards about love through a mistaken text at an advertising agency.
“Zombies 3” (Disney+, streaming) is the latest installment in the musical franchise about an unusual high school full of cheerleaders, zombies, werewolves and now, aliens. It premieres on cable Aug. 12.