Weekly watcher: 'The Passion' aims to inspire; 'Dancing With the Stars' and 'iZombie' return

Fox didn't waste any time getting back to a live musical. On Sunday, the network will air The Passion, which chronicles the last days of Jesus.

This isn't your regular Passion Play. This performance, produced and narrated by Tyler Perry, will unfold on the streets of New Orleans.

The singers may overshadow the music, contemporary though it may be. In a stark departure from singer-actor Jencarlos Canela's antics on Telenovela, he will play Jesus. Country superstar Trisha Yearwood will play Mary; Chris Daughtry will play Judas; Prince Royce will play Peter; and Seal will play Pontius Pilate.

Entertainment Tonight's Nischelle Turner has joined the cast and will report live on the proceedings.

7 p.m. on FOX. 2 hours.

SUNDAY

Once Upon a Time: Tonight, it's my favorite kind of flashback: the Rumple kind. As usual in the flashbacks, it has to do with his son Baelfire. 7 p.m. ABC (Ch. 8)

Crowded: TV mainstays Patrick Warburton (The Tick) and Carrie Preston (True Blood) watch as their children come home to roost in the season premiere. Stacy Keach (Mike Hammer!) as grandpa. 8:30 NBC (KXAS-TV, Ch. 5)

MONDAY

Dancing With the Stars: In its 22nd season, an elimination will still be the star of the season opener. Betting web site Bovada has Super Bowl MVP Von Miller of Arlington as 6-1 odds to win. 7 p.m. ABC (Ch. 8), 2 hours.

TUESDAY

iZombie: Liv returns with a new look, but some folks are up to their same old tricks. 8 p.m. The CW (Ch. 33).

Heartbeat: In the season premiere, an unorthodox heart surgeon turns out to be a maverick in all facets of her life. Melissa George stars. 8 p.m. NBC (KXAS-TV Ch. 5)

WEDNESDAY

Underground: According to WGN, the premiere was the most-watched broadcast on the network since the 1998 game in which Mark McGwire hit his record-setting 62nd home run. That's kind of a big deal since it felt as if the entire country tuned in for at least part of that game. Check it out for yourself as the group planning their escape makes a serious move tonight to get away from "America's original sin." Word to the wise: The only period music you might hear on this show is the hymn used to point the way to freedom. Grammy winner John Legend is executive producer and uses rap and other contemporary music to soundtrack the show. 9 p.m. WGN

Blackish: Dre thinks once, twice, three times about hiring a nanny. It's the subtlety in this series that grabs you. 8:30 p.m. ABC (Ch. 8)

THURSDAY

American Idol: And then there were four. The season is slow-walking viewers to its last finale as the remaining four singers perform. 7 p.m. FOX (Ch. 4). 2 hours.

Scandal: Finally! The writers pay attention to what's turning into Attorney General David Rosen's love triangle with Vice-President Susan Ross and Chief of Staff Elizabeth "Liz" North. Yeah, that's how this White House rolls. 8 p.m. ABC (Ch. 8)

FRIDAY

Caught on Camera With Nick Cannon: Want to catch up on viral videos? Then this show that collects them and airs them is for you. (S/N: This host who does the most always manages to get his name in the title. What's up with that?) 7 p.m. NBC (KXAS-TV, Ch. 5)

The Vampire Diaries: It's a rerun but it bears watching again. Especially since it was years in the coming: "Moonlight on the Bayou" finds Stefan on the run from a vampire hunter and headed to New Orleans for a crossover event. 7 p.m., The CW (Ch. 33)

The Originals: There will be blood as Stefan ends up caught in another way once he gets there. Because, of course, the original vampires have bloody problems of their own. 8 p.m., The CW (Ch. 33)

SATURDAY

The Ten Commandments: Go down, Moses. Cecil B. DeMille's epic tells the story of Moses, from when he was found in the rushes to his climb up the mountain to get those two stone tablets. 6 p.m. ABC (Ch. 8) 4 hours, 44 mins.

This week in home entertainment

The ghoul friends are back in Monster High: Great Scarrier Reef. Maybe off-putting at first, these girls -- or ghouls, as they call themselves -- are all about empowerment. This time, they get pulled into a magical underwater realm where Lagoona Blue -- the daughter of the Sea Monster and an ocean nymph -- learns to embrace her differences. (And before you go streaming, the packaging on this one reads "Not on Netflix.")