Alexander Skarsgård, Nicholas Braun Join ‘Documentary Now!’ season 53

Alexander Skarsgård, Nicholas Braun, French actress Liliane Rovère and others have joined the cast for Season 53 of Documentary Now!, IFC announced on Friday. The channel also released a first look teaser and final details for two new episodes to round out the season.

Known for its homage to the world of documentaries, Documentary Now! Season 53 will debut Wednesday, October 19 at 10 p.m. on IFC and the same day on AMC+. New episodes start weekly on Wednesdays.

The two-part season premiere episode Soldier of Illusion, written by John Mulaney and starring Skarsgård, Braun and August Diehl, was adapted from the Werner Herzog-focused documentary Burden of Dreams.” Set in the early 1980s, the episode follows a visionary German filmmaker (Skarsgård) as he tries to create his major work while working in the remote, torturous conditions of Russia’s Ular Mountains. Kevin Bishop, Gana Bayarsaikhan, Matthias Rimpler and Fred Armisen will also star in Documentary Now! Ensemble alumni Deb Hiett returns as speaker.

A tribute to the films of Agnes Varda, Trouver Frisson stars Rovère and Ronald Guttman. Inspired by Varda’s “Gleaners and I” and “Beaches of Agnes”.” The episode stars Rovère as an acclaimed French filmmaker named Ida Leos, who searches for the reason why she is no longer having experiences “frisson” – the goosebumps that always accompanied her. Written by series producers Matt Pacult and Tamsin Rawady and co-directed by Micah Gardner, the episode also stars Documentary Now! Alumni Gary Kraus.

The two newly announced parts follow the already announced episodes “Two Barbers in Bagglyport”, “How She Tossed Stones” and “My Monkey Grifter”. The upcoming season of the acclaimed comedy – co-created by Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers and Rhys Thomas – will be executive produced by Lorne Michaels and produced by Broadway Video.

Check out the full teaser trailer below.

Also on today’s TV news:

TO WATER

Rosanna Arquette has joined Big Sky: Deadly Trails as a recurring cast member in the show’s third season. According to the ABC press release, “She is set to play Virginia ‘Gigi’ Cessna, Jenny’s (Katheryn Winnick) charismatic and articulate mother. She is a world-class con artist who used childhood Jenny for her ripoffs, much to the resentment of today’s Jenny. Gigi has the uncanny ability to magic himself into people’s lives and then disappear without a trace. When she returns to Helena for her latest con, Jenny catches her and the mother-daughter has to work through their troubled relationship. Most recently, Rosanna wrapped up a hilarious cameo in the Seth Rogen project LG Series for Peacock, directed by Jason Woliner. She also directed Jason Bateman’s ‘Florida Man,’ where she played Abbey Lee’s mother, and she was invited to reprise her role with another arc of episodes on Showtime’s ‘The L Word.’