All the series, films and specials coming to streaming services this May.
All the series, films and specials coming to streaming services this May.

Pop CultureMay 1, 2023

What’s new to Netflix NZ, Neon and other streaming services in May

All the series, films and specials coming to streaming services this May.
All the series, films and specials coming to streaming services this May.

What are you going to be watching this month? We round up everything coming to streaming services this month, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, Neon and TVNZ+.

The biggies

White House Plumbers (weekly on Neon from May 2)

Veep is one of my all time favourite shows, but as the seasons drew on and the real world became weirder than the show’s world, it lost some of its bite. And that’s exactly why I am hyped for White House Plumbers. The five-part miniseries is created by some of the key people responsible for Veep, but this time they’re taking on a true story. Starring Woody Harrelson, Justin Theroux and a bunch of other big names, this HBO series takes a crooked look at those charged with stopping leaks to the media – the titular plumbers – during the time of the Watergate saga. It promises to be funny and factual in equal measures./ Stewart Sowman-Lund

The Gone (on TVNZ+ from May 7)

This new mystery drama is a Kiwi-Irish collab, featuring an international cast and set in both New Zealand and Ireland. When an Irish couple go missing while on holiday in rural New Zealand, an Irish detective flies out and teams up with the New Zealand police to solve the mystery. Filmed in Auckland, Te Aroha and Dublin, the six-part series follows the detectives as they must contend with small-town hostilities and a possible link to a series of historic murders. The international cast is impressive, including Michelle Fairey (Game of Thrones), Richard Flood (Grey’s Anatomy) and Acushla-Tara Kupe (Mr Corman). / Tara Ward

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story (on Netflix from May 4)

Haters be damned, if you give me more Bridgerton I will watch more Bridgerton! This prequel series expands on the steamy romance franchise, telling the story of the imperious Queen Charlotte (played in the OG series by Golda Roshueval, and here by newcomer India Amarteifio) and her rise to prominence and power in the court of King George. Early reviews for this one have been good, especially by Bridgerton standards, so it might be worth tuning in even if you don’t care for the rest of the franchise. But if, like me, you’re already corset-deep in love with Bridgerton, you’ll be binging this entire thing come this weekend. / Sam Brooks

City on Fire (weekly on AppleTV+ from May 12)

From the producers of Gossip Girl and The OC comes Apple TV+’s new mystery thriller, based on the 2015 novel by Garth Risk Hallberg. When college student Samantha Ciccaro is shot in Central Park in 2003, there are no witnesses to the crime and no motives for the killing. The investigation into her seemingly random murder begins to uncover a link between a series of mysterious fires, the New York music scene and a wealthy family where nothing is as it seems. Expect plenty of twists and turns, with Jemima Kirke (Girls) and Nico Tortorella (Younger) starring. / TW

The notables

Silo (weekly on AppleTV+ from May 5)

Give me anything set in a confined space and I will love it. Netflix’s Oxygen, M Night Shyamalan’s Devil, Matt Damon’s The Martian and  TV series Under the Dome and Wayward Pines all seem like inspiration for Silo, Apple TV+’s bleak sci-fi series about humanity’s last survivors living in an underground bunker. Rebecca Ferguson leads the cast, early reviews are positive, and the first trailer looks like an eerily prescient apocalyptic message for all of us if we can’t sort out climate change. Get thee to a bunker, stat. / Chris Schulz

American Born Chinese (weekly on Disney+ from May 25)

This new series, adapted from the 2006 graphic novel of the same name by Gene Luen Yang, is centred on high schooler Jin Wang (Ben Wang). Jin meets Taiwanese exchange student Wei-Chen (Jim Liu) and, before long, he finds himself thrown into the middle of a battle between the gods of Chinese mythology. Don’t you hate it when that happens?! Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu and Ke Huy Quan also star. / SB

Fubar (on Netflix from May 25)

Have you missed the very specific comic stylings of Arnold Schwarzenegger? Then your luck is in. Spy comedy FUBAR brings the action icon to the small screen for the first time. He and Monica Barbaro star as a father-daughter duo who both work for the CIA without realising it, and once the truth comes out they realise they actually don’t know each other at all. I imagine hijinks will ensue. / SB

Bouncers (on Neon from May 17)

From editor Madeleine Chapman’s review of the show: “Bouncers is a show that could and should be a prime-time series in New Zealand, with quotable lines and lovable characters. It showcases Daymond’s ability to tell compelling narratives, with a show that feels more polished than you’d expect from a first go at scripted, funded television.”

The movies

Millie Lies Low (on Neon from May 17)

This local gem from 2021 stars a tremendous Ana Scotney as Millie, an anxiety-ridden architecture grad who misses her flight to her prestigious New York internship. Rather than own up to her mistake, in classic millennial fashion she doubles down, and decides to fake being in the US while scrounging around her home town to gather funds for another ticket. / SB

Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (on Neon and Amazon Prime Video from May 25)

For my money, you could spend no more pleasant 115 minutes of your May than with this delightful Lesley Manville vehicle from last year. The plot is as lightweight as a Hermes scarf – a housewife in post-war London unexpectedly receives a war widow’s pension, which she uses to achieve her dream: a haute couture Dior dress. It’s fluffy, it’s frothy, and it’s surprisingly moving. I can’t recommend it higher. / SB

Hannah Gadsby: Something Special (on Netflix from May 9)

Another year, another Hannah Gadsby special. The Australian comedian went global with the absolutely devastating Nanette, and follow-up Douglas twisted the knife in the wound that show created. Something Special is a more classic special, with Gadsby delivering a comparatively traditional hour of build-up-and-pay-off comedy. I saw a bit of this in person live last year, and while it’s not their best hour, it’s definitely a worthy follow-up to those other legendary specials. / SB

The rest

 

Netflix

May 1

Scream 4

May 2

Love Village

The Tailor

May 3

Jewish Matchmaking

May 4

Sanctuary

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story

Larva Family

May 8

Spirit Rangers: Season 2

May 9

Hannah Gadsby: Something Special

May 10

Dance Brothers

Queen Cleopatra

Missing: Dead or Alive

May 11

Royalteen: Princess Margrethe

Ultraman: Season 3

May 12

Black Knight

Mulligan

Queer Eye: Season 7

The Mother

May 15

The Blacklist: Season 10

Roadrunner: A Film about Anthony Bourdain

May 16

Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me

Aftertaste: Season 1

May 17

Rhythm + Flow: France

Fanfic

Faithfully Yours

Working: What We Do All Day

McGregor Forever

May 18

XO, Kitty

Kitti Katz

Yakitori: Soldiers of Misfortune

May 19

Muted

Selling Sunset: Season 6

Young, Famous and African: Season 2

Kathal – A Jackfruit Mystery

May 22

The Creature Cases: Chapter 3

May 23

Wanda Sykes: I”m an Entertainer

Victim/Suspect

MerPeople

May 24

The Ultimatum: Queer Love

Hard Feelings

Mother’s Day

May 25

FUBAR

May 26

Turn of the Tide

Barbecue Showdown: Season 2

Siren: Survive The Island

Blood and Gold

Tin and Tina

May 30

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson: Season 3

May 31

Mixed by Erry

Neon

May 1

Adrift

May 2

White House Plumbers

Get Carter

May 3

Kiri and Lou: Season 2-3

May 4

Louis Theroux Interviews

Armageddon Time

May 5

Somebody Somewhere: Season 2

May 7

After Ever Happy

May 8

Nights in Rodanthe

May 9

Bullet Train

May 10

Accident Man: Hitman’s Holiday

May 11

Duncanville: Season 3

Halloween Ends

May 13

The Great: Season 3

The Jackal

May 14

The Nutcracker and the Magic Flute

May 15

Generator Rex

May 16

Fear the Walking Dead: Season 8a

Tom and Jerry: Snowman’s Land

May 17

Bouncers

Millie Lies Low

May 18

East New York

Romeo Must Die

May 19

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

May 20

2012

May 23

Orphan: First Kill

The Railway Children Return

May 24

Overdrive

May 25

The Equalizer: Season 3

Bros

Mrs Harris Goes to Paris

May 26

Mayans MC: Season 5

The Invitation

May 27

Good Mourning

May 30

Crag of the Creek

Bodies, Bodies, Bodies

May 31

The Heights: Season 1-2

TVNZ+

May 1

Friday Night Dinner: Season 6

Groundhog Day

Maid in Manhattan

Monster House

Delfin

Identifying Features

Uprooted: The Olympic Tribe

Megalodemocrat: The Public of Rafael Lorenzo-Hemmer

Trashed

Rescuing Rex

Prison for Profit

Hoax: The Kidnapping of Sherri Papini

Temptation Under the Sun

Burned by Love

Pom Poms and Payback

Hollywood Weapons: Season 4

For the Love of DILFs

Never Apart: Season 7

The Villbergs Wedding Chronicles: Season 2

Drag Heels: Season 3

Access All Areas: The AAA Girls Tour

OUTspoken: Coming OUt in Politics

Last Man Standing: Suge Knight and the Murders of Biggie and Tupac

Back in Time

Brabham

Wrinkles the Clown

May 4

Bupkis

May 5

I Am Legend

District 9

Salt

Once Upon a Time in Mexico

Desperado

Dredd

Harry Brown

Safe

Transporter 3

Apocalypto

Get the Gringo

St Elmo’s Fire

Close Encounters of the Third Kind

The Big Chill

Steel Magnolias

Black Sheep

Love Birds

We Were Soldiers

Buried

May 6

Doctor Thorne

May 7

The Gone

May 9

Riptide

May 11

The Bold Type

Girl, Interrupted

Almost Famous

Made in Dagenham

The Mist

Go

Spring Breakers

Wild Things

May 12

Kavos Weekender

May 13

Killer Siblings

Mark of a Killer: Season 2

May 15

Flack: Season 1-2

May 18

Rabbit Proof Fence

A River Runs Through It

The Descent

Hotel Mumbai

Insidious

Like Minds

May 25

Bleed For This

Stepmom

Poetic Justice

Triangle

Liberal Arts

The Road

Mr. Right

Paranormal Activity

May 28

Still Alice

The Tree of Life

A Single Man

Hunger

May 19

Bad Behaviour

May 20

Accident, Suicide or Murder

May 24

Black Snow

May 27

Some Girls

May 29

Orphan Black

May 30

Turn up the Volume

May 31

The Devil’s Playground

Disney+

May 2

A Small Light

May 3

Ed Sheeran: The Sum Of It All

PSY Summer Swag

Pose: Season 1-2

WWII Secrets from Above

May 4

Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures

Star Wars: Vision

May 5

Intertwined Live!

Taste the Nation with Padma Laksmi: Season 2

Charles: In His Own Words

May 10

The Muppets Mayhem

Lambert vs Lambert

Time Switch

Impuros: Season 3

America’s Funniest Home Videos: Season 20-22

May 12

Crater

May 17

Secrets of Sulphur Spring: Season 3

May 19

White Men Can’t Jump

May 24

The Clearing

American Born Chinese

Chip ‘n’ Dale: Park Life: Season 2

May 25

The Kardashians: Season 3

May 26

Mafia Confidential

Wild Life

May 31

The Actress

 

Amazon Prime Video

May 2

Jimmy O. Yang: Guess How Much?

May 4

Armageddon Time

May 5

Tommy Little: Pretty Fly for a Dickhead

May 7

After Ever Happy

May 9

Bullet Train

The Invitation

May 11

Halloween Ends

May 12

The Legend and Butterfly

May 16

Zarna Garg: One in a Billion

May 18

Neighbours: Season 20

May 19

Plane

May 24

James May: Oh Cook S2

May 25

Der Greif

A+

Bros

Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris

Carnifex

May 30

Bodies, Bodies, Bodies

Apple TV+

May 5

Silo

May 12

Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

City on Fire

May 17

High Desert

May 24

Platonic

Acorn

May 1

Balthazar

May 15

The Other Wife

May 22

Shattered

Shudder

May 12

Huesera: The Bone Woman

May 18

Sissy

May 26

Influencer

Keep going!