FX Announces Premiere Dates for ‘The Old Man,’ ‘English Teacher,’ ‘American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez’ and More

FX today announced the premiere dates for upcoming new and returning series, including the new comedy series English Teacher, the first installment of the American Sports Story franchise, the highly-anticipated return of The Old Man, the groundbreaking new docuseries Social Studies, and the latest documentary film from The New York Times Presents.

• FX’s The New York Times Presents: “Lie To Fly” – Latest documentary film premieres Friday, August 23 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX.

• FX’s English Teacher – New comedy series premieres Monday, September 2 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX with the first two episodes of the eight-episode season. All episodes will stream next day on Hulu. The series will be coming soon to Disney+ internationally.

• FX’s The Old Man – Season two premieres Thursday, September 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX with the first two episodes of the eight-episode season. All episodes will stream next day on Hulu. The series will be coming soon to Disney+ internationally. Also today, FX released the official teaser for season two of The Old Man.

• FX’s American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez – First installment of the new limited series franchise premieres Tuesday, September 17 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX with the first two episodes of the 10-episode series. All episodes will stream next day on Hulu. The series will be coming soon to Disney+ internationally.

• FX’s Social Studies – New docuseries premieres Friday, September 27 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX with the first two episodes of the five-episode series. All episodes will stream next day on Hulu. The series will be available on Disney+ internationally in select territories at a later date.

The New York Times Presents: “Lie To Fly”

Terror took hold of an Alaska Airlines flight last year after a man was accused of trying to crash the plane mid-flight and kill 83 people onboard. However, the accused was not just any passenger—he was a professional pilot, Joseph Emerson, who was under the influence of psychedelic mushrooms after fearing mental health treatment would derail his career.

The New York Times explores Joseph Emerson’s story and follows a growing movement calling for reform of the FAA’s strict rules around pilot mental health, which they claim leaves the public at risk.

English Teacher

English Teacher is a comedy series created by Brian Jordan Alvarez, in which he stars as “Evan Marquez,” a high school teacher in Austin, Texas who often finds himself at the intersection of the personal, professional and political aspects of working at a high school.

Evan wants to be a principled person but often runs into trouble because of it. By Evan’s side at Morrison-Hensley High is his friend group of other teachers. Chief among them is his best friend “Gwen Sanders” (Stephanie Koenig), the eager and optimistic history teacher who tends to see the best in people, even when she probably shouldn’t. Then there’s PE teacher “Markie Hillridge” (Sean Patton). Though he can seem gruff and abrasive, beneath the surface, he possesses a knowledge of human nature that often proves valuable to Evan. When they aren’t disagreeing, Markie and Evan share a genuine bond… but they’re usually disagreeing.

“Principal Grant Moretti” (Enrico Colantoni) wants nothing more than peace and the path of least resistance—a path Evan is rarely willing to take. While Grant keeps his own opinions close to the vest, he respects Evan’s passion, even if it makes his own job more difficult. Guidance Counselor “Rick” (Carmen Christopher) barely wants to be at this school—he sees himself as an entrepreneur—but still loves hanging out with the other teachers. Evan’s ex-boyfriend “Malcolm” (Jordan Firstman) is a former teacher at Morrison. Wild and free-thinking, Malcolm often draws Evan back into a pseudo-relationship.

When Grant informs Evan that he is being placed under investigation for a long-dormant incident where he and Malcolm kissed in front of students, Evan suddenly feels that he’s under a microscope and is being targeted for his sexuality. Evan is left with one rule to abide by: no relationships with faculty… only to meet “Harry” (Langston Kerman), a charming new teacher who seems to be interested in him. 

Over the eight-episode season, we follow Evan as he navigates his relationships, his students and his fellow faculty and tries to answer the question: can you really be your full self at your job?

Created by Brian Jordan Alvarez, FX’s English Teacher is executive produced by Alvarez, Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel and Dave King. Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender and Zach Dunn serve as co-executive producers. English Teacher is produced by FX Productions.

The Old Man

In Season 2 of The Old Man, former CIA agent “Dan Chase” (Jeff Bridges) and former FBI Assistant Director “Harold Harper” (John Lithgow) set off on their most important mission to date — to recover “Emily Chase” (Alia Shawkat) after she is kidnapped by “Faraz Hamzad” (Navid Negahban), a powerful Afghan tribal leader. With all three men claiming her as their daughter, Emily finds herself in an identity crisis that has dire implications.

As Chase and Harper fight their way to get to Emily, Hamzad is forced to make decisions that could endanger his family and the village he has led faithfully for a lifetime. “Khadija” (Jacqueline Antaramian), Hamzad’s sister and trusted advisor, is concerned about the path her brother has taken and what it will cost them. As the stakes get higher and more secrets are uncovered, “Zoe McDonald” (Amy Brenneman) makes surprising moves after having been drawn into a new world by Chase. Meanwhile, “Julian Carson” (Gbenga Akinnagbe) is disillusioned by his former role and finds himself at a crossroads with a path he hadn’t imagined for himself.

FX’s The Old Man is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Thomas Perry. Teleplay and created for television by Jonathan E. Steinberg & Robert Levine, The Old Man is executive produced by Steinberg, Dan Shotz, Warren Littlefield, Levine, Bridges, David Schiff, Craig Silverstein and Jon Watts. The series is produced by 20^th Television in association with The Littlefield Company.

American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez

The first installment of American Sports Story is based on the podcast Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez and Football Inc. from The Boston Globe and Wondery. The 10-episode limited series charts the rise and fall of NFL superstar Aaron Hernandez and explores the disparate strands of his identity, his family, his career, his suicide and their legacy in sports and American culture.

The series stars Josh Rivera (Aaron Hernandez), Jaylen Barron (Shayanna Jenkins), Lindsay Mendez (Tanya Singleton), Ean Castellanos (DJ Hernandez), Tammy Blanchard (Terri Hernandez), Tony Yazbeck (Urban Meyer), Patrick Schwarzenegger (Tim Tebow), Thomas Sadoski (Brian Murphy), Jake Cannavale (“Chris”) and Norbert Leo Butz (Bill Belichick).

American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez is executive produced by Ryan Murphy, Stuart Zicherman, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, Alexis Martin Woodall, Eric Kovtun, Scott Robertson and Carl Franklin. Hernan Lopez and Marshall Lewy of Wondery also serve as executive producers alongside Linda Pizzuti Henry and Ira Napoliello of The Boston Globe. The series is produced by 20th Television.

Social Studies

From Emmy Award winning filmmaker/photographer Lauren Greenfield, FX’s Social Studies is a character-driven documentary series that delves into the lives of the first generation raised on social media. Filmed in Los Angeles over a school year, this groundbreaking social experiment features a diverse group of LA teens who open up their lives and phones to offer an intimate glimpse into how social media has reshaped childhood. From battling bullying, grappling with beauty standards, coping with racism, exploring sexuality, navigating the pressures of constant comparison, and making life-altering decisions, their compelling and relatable experiences take us on a raw, visceral and urgent journey through the challenges of growing up in the digital age.

Social Studies is created, directed, and executive produced by Lauren Greenfield (The Queen of Versailles, Generation Wealth, The Kingmaker, THIN) alongside executive producers Frank Evers, Wallis Annenberg, Andrea Van Beuren, Regina K. Scully, and Caryn Capotosto.