Showtime has announced the movies and TV series coming to the service in May. The Showtime May 2023 lineup includes Ghosts of Beirut, VICE Season 4, the Yellowjackets Season 2 finale, and the Waco: The Aftermath finale.
Limited drama series Ghosts of Beirut is set during the turmoil of the Lebanese Civil War, which spanned from 1975 to 1990. Imad Mughniyeh, also known as “The Ghost,” masterminded the concept of suicide bombers. After the idea’s inception, Mughniyeh became responsible for more American deaths that any other individual prior to 9/11.
Ghosts of Beirut, which premieres Friday, May 19, examines the terrorist’s emergence from obscurity and the intelligence gathering employed in an attempt to stop him via dramatization interspersed with first-hand, real-life interviews with prominent officials from the CIA and the Israeli national intelligence agency, Mossad.
The long-running Showtime documentary series, VICE, kicks it off its fourth season on Sunday, May 7. Contrary to your favorite 24-hour news network, VICE dedicates its half-hour runtime to untold but nonetheless intriguing stories covered by an assembly of highly-regarded journalists.
The Showtime May 2023 slate also includes the season two finale of Original series Yellowjackets. The second season of Emmy-nominated series comes to a bloody end on Friday, May 26, when who is the head chef and who is on the menu may finally be revealed.
Two weeks prior, Waco: The Aftermath finales on Friday, May 12. This sequel to the Paramount Network original limited series examines the aftershock of the Waco siege and connects the historic conflict with the rise in domestic terrorism and anti-government movement throughout modern United States history up to the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the United States Capitol.
All is fair and love and war, and world-renowned psychoanalyst and couples therapist, Dr. Orna Guralnik, has seen it all. This season of her Showtime series, Couples Therapy, which features a range of couples and their troubles, concludes on Friday, May 26.
If you’re a fan of the X film series, the second installment of Ti West and A24’s cult-classic slasher films, Pearl, premieres on Showtime this month on Tuesday, May 16. With the announcement of the trilogy’s third installment, MaXXXine, and its subsequent cast list release, die-hard fans will definitely want to check out this Mia Goth-lead title, and its predecessor, X, before MaXXXine hits theaters.
Another notable premiere this May includes Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-nominated, semi-autobiographical coming-of-age drama The Fabelmans, which premieres on Showtime Thursday, May 11.
Showtime subscribers also have access to a treasure trove of theatrical films and collections. In recognition of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the Celebrating AAPI Talent collection features films, including the Oscar-winning Everything Everywhere All At Once, Driveways and Mr. Malcom’s List.
Subscribers will also have access to the Many Sides of Motherhood collection that includes films such as The Guilt Trip, Lady Bird and The Florida Project.
You can view the Showtime May 2023 originals, followed by the movie release schedule and streaming collections, below.
SHOWTIME MAY 2023 ORIGINALS
VICE – Season 4 Premiere: Sunday, May 7
Each half-hour episode of VICE relentlessly pursues untold stories of social justice, civil rights, and identity, tackling complex geopolitical stories from remote parts of the globe.
The VICE reporting team this season includes a diverse group of award-winning journalists, including Isobel Yeung, Alzo Slade, Paola Ramos, Hind Hassan, David Noriega, Krishna Andavolu, Ben C. Solomon, Vegas Tenold, Alyza Enriquez, Seb Walker and Suroosh Alvi.
The Emmy-nominated series returns with a new slate of groundbreaking stories from its team of global correspondents, including: Paola Ramos investigates the newest form of methamphetamine called P2P, or “super meth,” and its devastating effect on the country’s homelessness and mental health crises; and Hind Hassan reports on-the-ground from embattled Idlib, where this year’s devastating earthquake left this Syrian city reeling.
Krishna Andavolu also explores the recent groundbreaking advancements in artificial intelligence, including highly convincing chatbots, to breakdown the revolutionary advantages and potential pitfalls of the technology.
GHOSTS OF BEIRUT – Limited Series Premiere: Friday, May 19
Ghosts of Beirut reveals the origins of 21-year-old Imad Mughniyeh (also known as “The Ghost”) who emerged from obscurity and was responsible for more American deaths than any other individual prior to 9/11. Told from the American, Israeli and Lebanese perspectives, the series traces Mughniyeh’s origins from the Shiite slums of South Beirut to his masterminding of the concept of suicide bombers, a deadly tactic that led to his swift rise as the world’s most dangerous terrorist.
Based on extensive research of still-classified events, the drama spans decades and weaves in first-hand, real-life interviews with prominent officials from the CIA and Mossad, connecting the turmoil of 1980s Beirut with the spy games of the modern Middle East.
WACO: THE AFTERMATH – Limited Series Finale: Friday, May 12
Waco: The Aftermath focuses on the fallout of the Waco disaster: the trials of the surviving members of the Branch Davidian sect and the rise of homegrown terrorist, Timothy McVeigh.
The five-episode limited series also provides a broader context for the escalation of the American militia movement, which foreshadows the infamous attacks of the Oklahoma City bombing and the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6.
COUPLES THERAPY – Season 3 Finale: Friday, May 26
Couples Therapy, which received nominations from the International Documentary Association (IDA) Awards and the Critics’ Choice Real TV Awards in 2022, brings viewers into therapy sessions with Dr. Guralnik, as she deftly guides couples through the conflicts – and extraordinary breakthroughs – typically hidden behind closed doors.
The second part of season three concludes as four captivating new couples wrestling with the confines of long-term relationships reach their make-up or break-up points: two ex-Mormons struggle with betrayals past and present, a young Palestinian woman desperately tries to adjust to her partners’ demand for polyamory, a husband’s sexual frustration feeds his wife’s insecurities and Dr. Guralnik meets a therapeutic challenge in a man who refuses to face the damage caused by his infidelities.
YELLOWJACKETS – Season 2 Finale: Friday, May 26
Equal parts survival epic, psychological horror story and coming-of-age drama, Yellowjackets is the saga of a team of wildly talented high school girls soccer players who become the (un)lucky survivors of a plane crash deep in the remote northern wilderness.
The series chronicles their descent from a complicated but thriving team to savage clans, while also tracking the lives they’ve attempted to piece back together nearly 25 years later, proving that the past is never really past and what began out in the wilderness is far from over.
NEW MOVIES
A look at the movies that will be available as part of the Showtime May 2023 lineup.
AVAILABLE MAY 1
About Adam
About Last Night
Bad News Bears
Big Night
Blown Away
Blue Collar
Bringing Out the Dead
Caught in the Crossfire
Celebrity
Citizen Ruth
Coach Carter
Congo
Dances with Wolves
Days of Thunder
Desperately Seeking Susan
Domestic Disturbance
Down to You
Duplex
Erin’s Guide to Kissing Girls
eXistenZ
Fairytale: A True Story
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Gangs of New York
Get Over It
Good Mourning
House of Sand and Fog
Hugo
Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa .5
Joy of Sex
Like Crazy
Little Darlings
Mother
My Left Foot
Orca
Poppy
Primal Fear
Se7en
Seabiscuit
Serendipity
Shall We Dance?
She’s All That
The Bad News Bears
The Bad News Bears Go to Japan
The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training
The Friends of Eddie Coyle
The Italian Job
The Jerk
The Lookout
The Mighty Quinn
The Parallax View
The Running Man
The Talented Mr. Ripley
War Games
Wild Bill
AVAILABLE MAY 6
Sicko
AVAILABLE MAY 11
The Fabelmans
AVAILABLE MAY 16
Pearl
AVAILABLE MAY 25
American Cherry
STREAMING COLLECTIONS
In addition to the Showtime May 2023 schedule, you can check out these collections on the streaming service next month.
CELEBRATING AAPI TALENT
Boy, Broadcast Signal Intrusion, Columbus, Driveways, Erin’s Guide to Kissing Girls, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Inbetween Girl, Marvelous and the Black Hole, and Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon.
There’s also Mr. Malcom’s List, Ms. Purple, New York Ninja, Paradise Hills, Prison Fighters: 5 Rounds to Freedom, Queen of the Morning Calm, Snowpiercer, Songs My Brother Taught Me, The Kingmaker, and The Last Manhunt.
MANY SIDES OF MOTHERHOOD
5-25-77, 20th Century Woman, Citizen Ruth, Columbus, Ema, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Ida Red, Lady Bird, Madeline’s Madeline, Marvelous and the Black Hole, and Mother.
There’s also Mother of George, Queen of the Morning Calm, Signature Move, Tamm’s Always Dying, The Florida Project, and The Guilt Trip.
Mirko Parlevliet has been reporting on the entertainment industry since 1998 and founded Vital Thrills to cover the latest streaming, movie, TV, and game news.