Amongst the many new titles and additional streaming options that will be available in May are these 25 from nine countries.
Below is our curated list of 25 programs from countries in Africa, Asia, North America, and South America that are premiering and being added to schedules/offerings in the US (and other territories, where applicable) in May 2023. Additional program premieres are listed on our “viewing guide” page.
(For details about the premieres of programs from the UK, Ireland, English-speaking Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and subtitled original-language programs from countries in Europe, visit The British TV Place, The Down Under TV Place, and The Euro TV Place.)
Programs and dates for the programs below are subject to change without prior notice.
Videos below may contain content that is not suitable for everyone.
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Casa Grande (US)
Set in rural Northern California, this new bilingual limited series explores universal themes of class, immigration, culture, and family — peeling back the curtain on how the glimmering, upper-crust culture couldn’t exist without the unyielding, backbreaking labor of the socially-invisible migrant workforce toiling behind the scenes. It follows several families and features a young-love arc that is at once an upstairs/downstairs and a Romeo-and-Juliet story.
The cast includes John Pyper-Ferguson (Suits), Christina Moore (90210), Madison Lawlor (Dear White People), Karen Bethzabe (Fear the Walking Dead), Javier Bolaños (All American), Raquel Dominguez (Chicago Med), James Marsters (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Kate Mansi (Days of Our Lives), Daniel Edward Mora (The Bridge), Loren Escandon (The Baxters), and Ali Afshar (He’s Just Not That Into You).
Casa Grande premieres in the US on Monday, May 1, exclusively on Freevee.
When the Weather Is Fine (South Korea)
Based on the novel of the same name by Lee Do-woo, this romance drama stars Park Min-young (Busted!) as Mok Hae-won, a cellist who, drained from her life in the city, quits her job in Seoul and returns to the quiet village of Bookhyun, where she lived for a time during high school. Here she encounters former classmate Im Eun-seob (Seo Kang-joon, Grid), now a bookstore owner, who helps Hae-won to heal.
When the Weather Is Fine begins streaming Monday, May 1, on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
White House Plumbers (US)
This satirical historical drama takes the audience behind-the-scenes of the Watergate scandal as Nixon’s political saboteurs, E. Howard Hunt (Woody Harrelson, True Detective) and G. Gordon Liddy (Justin Theroux, The Mosquito Coast), accidentally topple the presidency they were zealously trying to protect… and their families along with it. It begins in 1971, when the White House hires Hunt and Liddy, former CIA and FBI, respectively, to investigate the Pentagon Papers leak. After failing upward, the pair lands on the Committee to Re-Elect the President, plotting several unbelievable covert ops, including bugging the Democratic National Committee offices at the Watergate complex. Proving that history can sometimes be stranger than fiction, this five-episode limited series sheds light on the lesser-known series of events that led to one of America’s greatest political crimes.
The cast includes Lena Headey (Game of Thrones), Judy Greer (Reboot), Domhnall Gleeson (The Patient), Toby Huss (Dickinson), Ike Barinholtz (History of the World: Part II), Kathleen Turner (The Kominsky Method), Kim Coates (Sons of Anarchy), Yul Vazquez (Godfather of Harlem), Alexis Valdés (Natural Born Narco), Nelson Ascencio (The Hunger Games), Tony Plana (Ugly Betty), Zoe Levin (Bonding), Liam James (Psych), Kiernan Shipka (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Tre Ryder (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), David Krumholtz (The Deuce), F. Murray Abraham (The White Lotus), Rich Sommer (Mad Men), and John Carroll Lynch (Big Sky).
White House Plumbers premieres in the US on Monday, May 1, at 9pm ET/PT, on HBO, with streaming available on HBO Max and its digital channels, including HBO Max on Amazon.
Jimmy O. Yang: Guess How Much? (US)
In his latest standup special, actor-comedian Jimmy O. Yang riffs on BTS, love languages, loser friends, and negotiating with his Asian parents.
Jimmy O. Yang: Guess How Much? premieres globally on Tuesday, May 2, exclusively on Prime Video. (You can add it to your watchlist now.)
Love Village (Japan)
This dating experiment / romance reality series follows eight men and women, aged 35+ and from various backgrounds, who move in together at a house in the mountains to see if love might happen in a tranquil and idyllic setting, away from the realities of the world. Their objective is to find their everlasting love by showing their real faces and true selves. Who amongst them will find love and leave the house and village with their partner?
Love Village, a Netflix Series, premieres globally on Tuesday, May 2, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Thalia’s Mixtape: El Soundtrack de mi Vida (US)
In this three-part music docuseries, global music superstar Thalia takes the audience on a musical journey, uncovering the classics that inspired generations of artists and created the current Latin music landscape seen today. Through a combination of interviews, found footage, and modern renditions of classic hits by today’s biggest stars, the series revisits the history of Latin music and uncovers the future of the genre in an intimate way.
Thalia’s Mixtape: El Soundtrack de mi Vida premieres in the US and Canada on Tuesday, May 2, exclusively on Paramount+ and its digital channel, including Paramount+ on Amazon — four days after Sony Music’s release of Thalia’s new album, Thalia’s Mixtape. The show’s launch in the UK, Australia, Latin America, Brazil, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria is on Wednesday, May 3.
Sanctuary (Japan)
Set in the world of sumo, whose history in Japan’s traditional culture and as a religious ceremony goes back more than 1,500 years, this new drama series gives viewers a gritty look into the underbelly of professional sumo, a world full of young men with ambitions for money, women, fame, and power. The story centers on Saruzakura (Wataru Ichinose, Weakest Beast), who uses his impressive physique and gift for martial arts to join a sumo stable as a young disciple, although his eye is only on money, not the sport itself. As a sumo apprentice, he finds himself on a collision course with a voiceless wrestler carrying a secret.
Costarring Pierre Taki (The Naked Director), Koyuki (The Naked Director), and Shota Sometani (Hibana), Sanctuary, a Netflix Series, premieres globally on Thursday, May 4, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Death’s Roulette (Mexico)
In this mystery thriller film, seven strangers wake up tied up in a mansion in the middle of nowhere and discover that they are part of a twisted game. According to the rules, they have 60 minutes to choose one amongst them to die. If they don’t, all of them will be assassinated. As the clock ticks down, each person tries to justify their life over everyone else’s to save themselves, bringing the most lurid secrets to light and leading the seven to realize that they are all connected by a dark past.
The cast includes Manolo Cardona (Who Killed Sara?), Maribel Verdú (You Cannot Hide), Carla Adell (Monarca), Fernando Becerril (The Envoys), Juan Carlos Remolina (Who Killed Sara?), Dagoberto Gama (Harina), and Adriana Paz (Locked Up).
Death’s Roulette, a Paramount+ Original, premieres in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, Latin America, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and South Korea on Friday, May 5, exclusively on Paramount+ and, where available, on its digital channels, such as Paramount+ on Amazon.
Entrelazados Live! (Argentina)
This special includes the original songs “Donde voy” and “Convénceme,” covers from the ’90s such as “Keep Living Without Your Love,” a selection of songs from the musical Freaky Friday: A New Musical, and musical hits of the moment such as “Tacones Rojos” and “Vivir Así.”
Entrelazados Live!, a Disney+ Original, premieres globally on Friday, May 5, exclusively on Disney+.
Silo (US)
Based on Hugh Howey‘s New York Times best-selling trilogy of dystopian novels (Wool, Shift, and Dust), this drama is the story of the last ten thousand people on earth, whose home, located a mile below the surface, protects them from the toxic and deadly world outside. But no one knows when or why the silo was built, and anyone who tries to find out faces fatal consequences. After its sheriff breaks a cardinal rule and residents die mysteriously, engineer Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson, Dune, “Mission Impossible” films) seeks answers about a loved one’s murder and in the process tumbles onto a mystery that goes far deeper than she could have ever imagined, uncovering shocking secrets and the truth about the silo.
The cast of the ten-episode series includes Common (The Chi), Harriet Walter (Succession), Chinaza Uche (Dickinson), Avi Nash (The Walking Dead), David Oyelowo (Selma), Rashida Jones (Parks and Recreation), Tim Robbins (Mystic River), Iain Glen (Game of Thrones), Ferdinand Kingsley (Victoria), Shane McRae (Sneaky Pete), Rick Gomez (The Crossing), Henry Garrett (Poldark), Angela Yeoh (Slow Horses), and Helene Maksoud (Shetland).
Silo, an Apple Original, premieres globally with its first two episodes on Friday, May 5, exclusively on Apple TV+, with new episodes debuting weekly through June 30.
Black Knight (South Korea)
Based on a popular webtoon, this sci-fi action series set in 2071 depicts a post-apocalyptic world where the Korean peninsula has become a desert wasteland. Only one percent of the population has survived, and strict social stratification has been established. Here deliverymen play critical roles in a society that has stopped functioning properly. Like other deliveryman, the one known as “5-8” (Kim Woo-bin, Our Blues) works as a lifeline to mankind, delivering oxygen and other necessities in the daytime. At night, though, he is quite unlike them: With extraordinary battle skills unmatched by anyone, 5-8 transforms into a Black Knight, one with a plot to upend the order created by Cheonmyeong Group.
This company is the de facto ruler of the devastated world, controlling it by capitalizing on oxygen, as survivors depend on respirator masks to breathe due to extreme air pollution. Heading Cheonmyeong Group is the company’s sole heir, the ruthless Ryu Seok (Song Seung-heon, Voice), who clashes with 5-8 as he defends his vision of a world with no place for the refugees. Meanwhile, Seol-ah (Esom, Kill Boksoon), a major at the Defense Intelligence Command, warns 5-8 that chaos may spiral out of hand, and young refugee Sa-wol (Kang You-seok, Melting Me Softly) aspires to become a Black Knight like 5-8 and to join the fight.
While 5-8 plots to overturn the crooked world order, Ryu Seok moves forward with his dark ambitions, Sa-wol continues his pursuit of becoming a Black Knight, and Seol-ah investigates Cheonmyeong’s sinister and dirty secrets…
Black Knight, a Netflix Series, premieres globally on Friday, May 12, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
City on Fire (US)
Inspired by the acclaimed novel of the same name by Garth Risk Hallberg, this mystery-crime drama series revolves around Samantha (Chase Sui Wonders, Generation), an NYU student who is shot in Central Park on July 4th, 2003. Samantha is alone; there are no witnesses and very little physical evidence. Her friends’ band is playing at her favorite downtown club, but she leaves to meet someone, promising to return. She never does. As the crime against Samantha is investigated, she’s revealed to be the crucial connection between a series of mysterious citywide fires, the downtown music scene, and a wealthy uptown real estate family fraying under the strain of the many secrets they keep.
The cast of the eight-episode series includes Wyatt Oleff (I Am Not Okay with This), Jemima Kirke (Girls), Nico Tortorella (Younger), Ashley Zukerman (Succession), Xavier Clyde (5 South), Max Milner (The Dirt), Alexandra Doke (Grey’s Anatomy), Omid Abtahi (American Gods), Kathleen Munroe (Patriot), and John Cameron Mitchell (The Sandman).
City on Fire, an Apple Original, premieres globally with the first three episodes on Friday, May 12, exclusively on Apple TV+, with new episodes debuting every Friday through June 16.
Zarna Garg: One in a Billion (US)
In writer-actress-producer and award-winning comedian Zarna Garg’s (To the Letter) first streaming stand-up special, the unapologetic, Indian-immigrant mom has plenty to joke about, and the punch lines come fast and furious with her unique brand of tough love humor.
Zarna Garg: One in a Billion premieres globally on Tuesday, May 16, exclusively on Prime Video
High Desert (US)
Patricia Arquette (Medium) stars in this new dark comedy as Peggy, an on-again-off-again addict who decides to make a new start after the death of her beloved mother, with whom she lived in the small desert town of Yucca Valley, California. Her life-changing decision: to become a private investigator.
The cast of the eight-episode series includes Matt Dillon (Wayward Pines), Christine Taylor (Arrested Development), Weruche Opia (I May Destroy You), Brad Garrett (Everybody Loves Raymond), Bernadette Peters (The Good Fight), and Rupert Friend (Anatomy of a Scandal).
High Desert, an Apple Original, premieres globally with the first three episodes on Wednesday, May 17, exclusively on Apple TV+, with new episodes debuting weekly through June 21.
La Reina del Sur: Season 3 (Mexico)
In the new season of this action-crime telenovela, Teresa Mendoza (Kate del Castillo, Ingobernable) makes a daring escape from prison and becomes involved in a new and unexpected alliance. Risking her life while on the lam across Latin America, she attacks the DEA in ways no one dared to imagine. Her chances of survival are slim, but her decision to fight is absolute. Then Teresa can see the light at the end of the tunnel, the goal she’s longed to attain for so long, where she can clear her name, leave the past behind her, and live a life in peace with her daughter.
La Reina del Sur: Season 3 begins streaming Wednesday, May 17, on Netflix.
Prisoners of War: Season 1 (Israel) — English-Dubbed Version
Available with English-dubbed audio for the first time in the US, this award-winning Israeli mystery-thriller series, upon which the American series Homeland is based, follows two Israeli soldiers who, after spending 17 years in captivity when a secret mission with their unit in Lebanon didn’t go as planned, return home alive. As they attempt to reintegrate themselves into Israeli society and their families, a secret investigation is launched to find the truths behind their capture and the many discrepancies in the survivors’ stories. As the investigators get closer to finding out what really happened to them in captivity, the two soldiers become even more determined to hide the biggest secret of all.
The English-dubbed version of Prisoners of War: Season 1 premieres in the US in its ten-episode entirety on Thursday, May 18, exclusively on Topic and its digital channels, including Topic on Amazon, where both seasons of the original Hebrew- and Arabic-language version are currently available for streaming.
Ghosts of Beirut (US)
This spy thriller is based on one of the greatest espionage stories of modern times: the manhunt for Imad Mughniyeh, the elusive Lebanese terrorist who outwitted his adversaries in the CIA and Mossad for over two decades.
Starring Amir Khoury (Fauda) and Hisham Suliman (Baghdad Central) as Mughniyeh at different ages, Ghosts of Beirut premieres in the US on Friday, May 19, on Showtime’s non-linear platforms, including sho.com and Showtime on Amazon. The Showtime linear debut starts on Sunday, May 21, at 10pm ET/PT.
Kathal – A Jackfruit Mystery (India)
In this crime comedy-drama, when two prized jackfruits disappear from a politician’s garden, a spirited cop’s investigation takes an unexpected turn as she digs for the truth.
Starring Sanya Malhotra (Hit: The First Case), Anant Joshi (Cobalt Blue), and Vijay Raaz (Monsoon Wedding), Kathal – A Jackfruit Mystery, a Netflix Film, premieres globally on Friday, May 19, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Primo (US)
This coming-of-age comedy follows Rafa Gonzales (Ignacio Diaz-Silverio, The Good Fight), a wide-eyed 16-year-old being raised by his clever mother, Drea (Christina Vidal, The Terminal List), and his five overbearing uncles — Rollie (Johnny Rey Diaz, Grey’s Anatomy), Mike (Henri Esteve, Grown-ish), Ryan (Carlos Santos, Gentefied), Jay (Jonathan Medina, Walker: Independence), and Mondo (Efrain Villa, Better Call Saul) — as they live their lives on the south side of San Antonio. Rafa is at an inflection point, as three big life moments coincide: he and his friends are nearing the end of high school; he’s pretty sure he just met the girl of his dreams; and he just found out he has a real chance to become the first person in his family to go to college. Everyone in the family will affect each other and help one another grow in ways they weren’t expecting, whether they like it or not.
Primo premieres in the US, UK, Germany, and Austria on Friday, May 19, exclusively on Freevee.
Young, Famous & African: Season 2 (South Africa)
This reality series follows a crew of famed, affluent stars as they work and play, flirt and feud in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Young, Famous & African: Season 2 premieres globally on Friday, May 19, exclusively on Netflix.
American Born Chinese (US)
Based on Gene Luen Yang’s groundbreaking graphic novel, this action comedy series is the story of Jin Wang (Ben Wang, Chang Can Dunk), a regular American teenager whose life is forever changed when he befriends the son of a mythological god.
The cast includes most of the main cast of Everything Everywhere All at Once, including Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, Stephanie Hsu and James Hong, as well as Daniel Wu (Into the Badlands), Jimmy Liu, Poppy Liu (Hacks), Ronny Chieng (Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.), and Jimmy O. Yang (80 for Brady), amongst others.
American Born Chinese, a Disney+ Original, premieres in its entirety on Wednesday, May 24, exclusively on Disney+.
Platonic (US)
Seth Rogen (The Fabelmans) and Rose Byrne (Physical) star in this new romantic comedy series as a platonic pair of former best friends who, as they approach midlife, reconnect after a long rift. The duo’s friendship becomes all consuming — and destabilizes their lives in a hilarious way.
The cast of the 10-episode half-hour comedy series includes Luke Macfarlane (Brothers & Sisters), Tre Hale (Lethal Weapon), Carla Gallo (Bones), and Andrew Lopez (Blockers).
Platonic, an Apple Original, premieres globally with the first three episodes on Wednesday, May 24, exclusively on Apple TV+, with new episodes debuting weekly through July 12.
Judge Me Not (US)
This drama series follows the story of Zelma Jay Johnson (Chyna Layne, She’s Gotta Have It), an unusually bright, young black woman who struggles with mental health issues, a ludicrous family, and a volatile love life — and wins a judicial seat at the age of 31. As she takes on her new role as a judge in a court full of outrageous characters both in front of and behind the bench, she also finds herself caught in the crosshairs a psychological thriller that puts her life at risk.
Judge Me Not premieres in the US on Thursday, May 25, exclusively on ALLBLK and its digital channels, including ALLBLK on Amazon.
Reality (US)
Based on true events, this film centers on 25-year-old former American intelligence specialist Reality Winner (Sydney Sweeney, Euphoria, The White Lotus), who, on June 3, 2017, is confronted by FBI agents arriving at her home to question her suspected role in the mishandling of classified information. The film’s dialogue is directly from the transcript of their tense and transfixing conversation.
Costarring Josh Hamilton (The Walking Dead) and Marchánt Davis (Tuscaloosa), Reality, an HBO Original Film, premieres Monday, May 29, at 10pm ET/PT, exclusively on HBO, with streaming available on Max.
Siren: Survive the Island (South Korea)
This combat survival show features 24 women with extraordinary physical capabilities and strategic thinking skills, who form 6 teams according to their jobs — police officers, firefighters, bodyguards, stuntwomen, soldiers, and athletes — that fight for survival on an unknown island over six nights and seven days until one team emerges as the winner.
Siren: Survive the Island, a Netflix Series, premieres globally (date tba) exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
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For details about the premieres of programs from the UK, Ireland, English-speaking Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and original-language programs from countries in Europe, please visit The British TV Place, The Down Under TV Place, and The Euro TV Place.
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