New on Sky Cinema and NOW in May 2023: Best movies and TV from Poker Face to White House Plumbers

May 2023 is another busy, blockbuster and binge-watch filled month for Sky Cinema and NOW is headlined by a double-header of original thriller movies.

First up, darkness and paranoia lurk on the streets of 70s London in The Guard Brothers’ Dead Shot, which sees Colin Morgan play a retired Irish paramilitary hell bent on revenge. Then, in To Catch a Killer, Shailene Woodley stars alongside Ben Mendelsohn as a rookie detective who must overcome her traumatic past to… y’know… catch a killer.

Talking of killers, Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode faces horror’s most iconic murderer Michael Myers one last time in Halloween Ends. The final chapter in David Gordon Green’s bloody reboot trilogy is available on demand from mid-May.

Read more: Everything new on Prime Video in May

Read more: Everything new on Paramount+in May

Read more: Everything new on Netflix in May

Read more: Everything new on Disney+ in May

Thankfully, there are no murderers on the loose in the George Clooney and Julia Roberts starring whimsical destination rom-com Ticket to Paradise, which lands on Sky Cinema at the start of the month.

Over on the TV side of things, original satire mini-series White House Plumbers is set to plunge into the true story of how President Nixon’s own political saboteurs and Watergate masterminds wound up toppling the presidency they were trying to protect.

Rounding out the month’s TV highlights are the hotly anticipated second seasons of bold Fresh Prince reimagining Bel-Air and noir crime drama Perry Mason.

Read more: Everything leaving Netflix in May

Here’s everything we know is heading to Sky and NOW this month…

New movies on Sky Cinema and NOW in May 2023

Ticket to Paradise | 5 May

George Clooney and Julia Roberts are on sparkling form as a divorced couple who team up to sabotage their daughter’s big day in Ticket to Paradise. A throwback to rom-coms of yore that ran on sizzling chemistry, blooper reels, and movie star power alone, this destination wedding farce from Mamma Mia! director Ol Parker is an absolute riot from start to finish.

Dead Shot (Sky Original) | 12 May

Originally titled Borderland, with John Boyega set to star, it’s taken 11 years for The Guard Brothers’ Dead Shot to make it from script to screen. But now it’s here, with Merlin’s Colin Morgan taking on the lead role of Micheal, an Irish ex-paramilitary who undertakes an odyssey of revenge in 70s London following the murder of his wife at the hands of an SAS officer (Aml Ameen). Felicity Jones and Mark Strong co-star in this taut thriller.

Mrs Harris Goes to Paris | 13 May

Quite possibly the most warmhearted film this side of Paddington 2, comedy of manners Mrs Harris Goes to Paris stars a radiant Lesley Manville as a widowed cleaning lady who heads to the continent in pursuit of a coveted Dior dress. An escapist delight with an incredible Isabelle Huppert cameo, this Oscar-nominated gem revels in the simple pleasures of kindness, fine fashion, and the beauty of the City of Light.

Halloween Ends | 19 May

13 films into one of horror’s most legendary franchises, it’s worth taking the titular promise of Halloween Ends with a pinch of salt. But, if this really is Michael Myers’ final bow in the boiler suit then it’s a hell of a finale. Set four years after Halloween Kills, this trilogy closer reckons with resident evil as a troubled young man (Rohan Campbell) picks up Myers’ bloody baton (well, knife), setting up a final showdown for the ages between the Strode clan and Haddonfield’s boogeyman.

Lyle, Lyle Crocodile | 26 May

Shawn Mendes is the shy croc with a killer voice in Lyle, Lyle Crocodile, a musical adventure based on Bernard Waber’s classic American children’s book series. The Greatest Showman songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul conjure enough compositional magic to get your toes tapping, while Javier Bardem’s inspired - and quite possibly possessed - performance as a cuckoo magician with delusions of grandeur really must be seen to be believed.

To Catch a Killer (Sky Original) | 27 May

Committed performances from Shailene Woodley and Ben Mendelsohn drive To Catch a Killer, Sky’s latest original crime thriller. Here, Woodley plays Eleanor Falco, a young and promising Baltimore PD police officer whose tortured mind becomes an invaluable tool when the FBI’s chief investigator (Mendelsohn) recruits her to help find a brutal serial killer with their own seemingly unfathomable mind. This is definitely one for fans of the genre to enjoy.

Smile (2022) | 28 May

Sosie Bacon finds her sanity slipping in Smile, the latest horror blockbuster from Blumhouse. Probably best known for its viral marketing campaign, Parker Finn’s feature debut is far more than its demonic grinning gimmick may suggest. The filmmaker actually uses the idea of an uncanny entity occupying emotionally fraught hosts to explore the ways in which society demonises and disregards those in most need of our love and understanding.

New TV on Sky and NOW in May 2023

Perry Mason S2 | 2 May

Set in early 30s, post-Depression Los Angeles, the first season of neo-noir legal drama Perry Mason introduced us to Matthew Rhys’ titular down-and-out PI as he took on his first case as a defence attorney. Now, with secretary and legal scholar Della Street (Juliet Rylance) and new PI Paul Drake (Chris Chalk) at his side, the renowned defence lawyer Perry Mason begins to take more recognisable shape in this lavish, cinematically shot and psychologically complex second season.

Bel-Air S2 | 5 May

For a show that started life as a proof of concept YouTube video, Bel-Air is the perfect example of how to reboot a beloved show. Zeroing in on the complicated journey that takes West Philadelphia born and raised Will (Jabari Banks) from the streets of Philly to the princely Bel-Air, the series - now heading into its second season - transcends its sit-com origins to offer a powerful commentary on class, race, and familial conflict.

Last King of the Cross | 18 May

Based on John Ibrahim’s best-selling autobiography, Last King of the Cross charts Ibrahim’s rise from being an impoverished immigrant with nothing to his name, to being the most infamous nightclub mogul in Sydney’s Kings Cross, a strip generously described as “a mecca of sin”. Lincoln Younes stars as John Ibrahim, whilst Tim Roth appears alongside as one of the crime bosses Ibrahim tangles with.

Poker Face | 26 May

After winning over critics and audiences in the US, Rian Johnson's new detective show Poker Face will finally air in the UK exclusively on Sky Max and streaming service NOW.

Created, written, directed and executive produced by Johnson, writer/director/producer of the Knives Out movies, the show is a ten-episode mystery-of-the-week series following Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale, who has an extraordinary ability to determine when someone is lying. Each week features a guest star including Adrien Brody, Nick Nolte, Hong Chau, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt and many more.

White House Plumbers | 30 May

Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux are Watergate masterminds E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy in White House Plumbers, a new satirical political drama from HBO.

Read more: The wild true story behind White House Plumbers

The five-part mini-series lifts the lid on how Hunt and Liddy, committed by President Nixon to the task of plugging governmental press leaks by any means necessary, ended up accidentally catalysing the downfall of the very presidency they were sworn to protect.

Other movies/TV on Sky Cinema and NOW in May 2023

5 May

Mia And Me: The Hero of Centopia (2022)

The Old Way (2023)

12 May

Vengeance (2022)

19 May

Alone Together (2022)

Confess, Fletch (2022)

25 May

The Ark (S1)

26 May

Summering (2022)

TBC May

The Conners (S5)

Black Lady Sketch Show (S4)

Watch a trailer for Confess Fletch