A Simple Favor – Picture: Lionsgate Films
With May 2024 just around the corner, it’s time to look into the eight movies we think should be on your radar throughout the month ranging from a new sci-fi action epic starring Jennifer Lopez to a comedy murder mystery starring Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively.
As always, with our monthly look ahead (if you missed our April 2024 list, head here), we split this article into two sections for global and US readers. Firstly, we cover some Netflix Original movies coming to Netflix globally. In these cases, we’ll call them our most anticipated given that we’ve not seen them just yet. In the second half, we’ll cover licensed titles specifically coming to Netflix US, with the availability of other regions varying.
For the full list of what’s coming up on Netflix throughout May 2024 (and we mean a full list!), keep it locked here on What’s on Netflix.
With that out of the way, here’s our top picks
Most Anticipated Netflix Originals Coming in May 2024
Thelma the Unicorn
Coming to Netflix: May 17th
Netflix’s animation output so far in 2024 has been a bit quiet. We kicked off the year strong with Orion and the Dark, but since then, beyond The Casagrandes Movie, it’s been super quiet. Hopefully, that’ll start to change with Thelma the Unicorn up next.
With some of the best lighting in any animated movie I’ve seen in quite some time, Thelma the Unicorn is adapting the well-known kids’ novel following a pony who wants to become a glamorous music star but, to stand out, has to become a unicorn.
ATLAS
Coming to Netflix: May 24th
Jennifer Lopez in a mech suit. If that’s not a suitable hook, I don’t know what will be! Returning for her second movie at the streamer, ATLAS is a new sci-fi action where Lopez plays a counterterrorism analyst who is humanity’s last hope as she’s tasked with capturing a rogue renegade robot.
I have high expectations for this one, at least in terms of its viewing performance, given the success of The Mother, which was released to mostly positive reviews last summer.
Unfrosted
Coming to Netflix: May 3rd
You may see Jerry Seinfeld is currently generating a lot of headlines. That’s because his next major Netflix project (following Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee and his stand-up specials) is heading to the service early in the month. The ensemble cast will and absolutely should be why most of us will get through the door to watch, but will it be worth staying? That’s a big question.
The reason we ask that question is because the plot of the movie, at least on paper, seems quite trivial as it seeks to documentary the so-called Breakfast Wars in the early 1960s with Kelloggs facing off against Post Cereal.
Among the cast for the movie includes Jerry Seinfeld, Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Hugh Grant, and Amy Schumer.
My Oni Girl
Coming to Netflix: May 24th
Every month, we feature an international film in this spot, and I’m happy that this month, I’m getting to pick a brand new animated movie, this one from Studio Colorido, a Japanese company. This film serves as the studio’s fourth major feature film.
Directed by Studio Ghibli alum Tomotaka Shibayama, this film finds a first-year high school student, Hiiragi, who is unable to say no whenever someone requests something of him teaming up with an one girl who is the polar opposite of them going on a quest to find her mother.
Best Licensed Movies Coming to Netflix US in May 2024
Dark Waters (2017)
Coming to Netflix: May 1st
Mark Ruffalo has starred in some excellent movies, but his crowning achievement, in my opinion, is his role in the Focus Features drama, Dark Waters.
Certified Fresh on RottenTomatoes, the movie tells the story of an attorney who digs deep into the weeds of growing deaths connected to one of the world’s largest corporations, which puts him up against dangerous adversaries.
Todd Haynes is behind the movie, so no wonder it’s so good, but if you’ve never seen it, it’s well worth a look when it returns on the first of the month.
The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)
Coming to Netflix: May 5th
Described as a “modern Mark Twain-style adventure story,” this Shia LaBeouf movie is a return to form for the embattled actor in what is an emotional and beautiful trip from start to finish.
With the dream of becoming a professional wrestler, Zak, a young man with Down syndrome, flees his residential nursing home. By chance, he stumbles upon Tyler, who is also fleeing under very different circumstances.
The movie touches on some complex subjects but will have you smiling throughout. A true gem.
Upgrade (2018)
Coming to Netflix: May 16th
ATLAS isn’t the only sci-fi movie making its Netflix debut next month. The thriller Upgrade, starring Logan Marshall-Green, will also premiere midway through the month.
Set in the year 2046, the movie follows an auto mechanic who is a technophobe and shies away from the commonly implanted computer chips. He must put his fear of technology aside when he seeks revenge and, to do so, implants an experimental chip called Stem.
Leigh Whannell directs this intense Cyberpunk-esque thriller, which is a joy to watch and has flown under the radar for far too long.
A Simple Favor (2018)
Coming to Netflix: May 19th
Rounding out our licensed picks is A Simple Favor, headlined by Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, and Henry Golding, and comes from Lionsgate.
Set in the suburbs of Connecticut the plot centers around Stephanie, a widowed vlogger and single mother who chronicles her daily life. Her best friend, Emily, epitomizes success with a high-powered career, a devoted family, and a dazzling existence. But when Emily vanishes without a trace, Stephanie pivots her online content to unravel the mystery. She delves deep into Emily’s enigmatic past, uncovering shocking secrets that promise to captivate her audience and upend her understanding of her closest confidante.
Jamie East, in his review for The Sun, says, “As a thriller, it’s a bit of a dud – but as a sexy, crude, swaggering comedy (much like the 4pm martini), it really hits the spot.”
What are you going to be checking out on Netflix next month? Let us know in the comments.