MTV Stages a Crowd-Free 2020 Video Music Awards

What if MTV staged a Video Music Awards show and nobody came? Last year at this time, that would have sounded absurd, but this Sunday — on the heels of two most unconventional political conventions — MTV is doing some reinventing of its own as it airs a crowd-free show from various outdoor locations across New York City. Also this weekend: Wynonna Earp airs its mid-season finale, Love Fraud pursues a scam artist, and The Circus looks back on the week in politics. Here's what's new and noteworthy on TV this weekend:

SATURDAY AUGUST 29

CABLE PREMIERE: Its theatrical run was cut short when theaters closed down back in March, but audiences will get a second chance to see The Way Back, starring Ben Affleck as a former basketball star who's given the opportunity to lift himself up from tragedy and alcoholism now that the film is making its premium cable debut. Watch the trailer. 8:00 PM ET on HBO

RECAP EPISODE: This season's Las Vegas-based Love Island has completed the first of its five weeks, but don't worry if you missed any of it: tonight's two-hour recap show will get you all caught up. 8:00 PM ET on CBS

MADE FOR TV MOVIE: Cassie (Brytnee Ratledge) learns some sleazy Sorority Secrets when she when she discovers her sorority is operating a prostitution ring. 8:00 PM ET on Lifetime

NEW EPISODE: Since cancelling Live PD, A&E has seen a precipitous ratings drop, a trend they're clearly hoping to reverse with the show's spinoff series Live Rescue, which airs a new episode tonight after returning for its third season last week 9:00 PM ET on A&E

NEW EPISODE: A luxury spa vacation takes a disturbing turn when a guest finds a spirit holding her baby on Hotel Paranormal. Meanwhile, a hotel owner is locked in a battle against a dark entity. 10:00 PM ET on Travel

SUNDAY AUGUST 30

AWARDS SHOW: MTV is set to salute the resiliency of New York City at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, with live outdoor performances across the city from the likes of Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, BTS, Miley Cyrus, DaBaby and The Weeknd. Keke Palmer hosts. 8:00 PM ET /5:00 PM PT on MTV (simulcast on VH1, BET, TVLand, Comedy Central, and The CW)

DOCUSERIES PREMIERE: Following in the tradition of The Jinx and Tiger King, Primetimer's Sarah D. Bunting says Showtime's Love Fraud may just be your next true crime TV obsession. The new four-part docuseries follows a group of women who band together after discovering they've all been victimized by the same Don-Juan scammer. Watch the trailer. 9:00 PM ET on Showtime

DOCUSERIES FINALE: As one docuseries begins, another ends. Helter Skelter: An American Myth wraps its six-episode run with a look why Charles Manson continues to command our attention fifty years later. 10:00 PM ET on Epix

MIDSEASON FINALE: The team races to rescue one of their allies, but face an unseen oppositional force as Wynonna Earp airs its midseason finale. The cast and crew recently returned to the show's set in Calgary to shoot the season's final six episodes, which will air at a later date Watch the preview. 10:00 PM ET on Syfy

NEW EPISODE: Thursday's episode left off with the Head of Household competition very much still in play. Tonight on Big Brother, we'll see who won, and whether Kaysar can stay alive with his best ally, Janelle, evicted. In three weeks, we've had three male HOHs, so we'll see if that streak can be broken. Whoever wins HOH, they'll then have to nominate two fellow houseguests for eviction. 8:00 PM ET on CBS

NEW EPISODE: Friday's first recouping ceremony of the season left the denizens of Love Island reeling. How will this new normal change the game's dynamics? 9:00 PM ET on CBS

NEW EPISODE: Leti (Jurnee Smollett) wants to bring about change on Lovecraft Country, but when she begins converting an old Chicago home into a boarding house, she disturbs a spirit that has taken up residence in the neglected building. 9:00 PM ET on HBO

SPECIAL PRESENTATION: A&E takes a hard look at the issues of policing and racial inequality in Rise Up: The Movement that Changed America, which examines key moments in the battle for Civil Rights, showing how protests from the 1950s through the present day can help to bring about legislative changes. Watch the trailer. 8:00 PM ET on A&E

NEW EPISODE: Showtime's real-time political docuseries The Circus looks back at this week's Republican National Convention as only they can, offering unprecedented access to thought-leaders and operatives across the political landscape. 8:00 PM ET on Showtime

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