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So far, 2023 has been quite a year for movies with The Super Mario Bros. Movie still dominating the box office. However, this year has also been a mixed bag for theaters, from the widely popularized Cocaine Bear in February to the widely panned Apple TV+ action-adventure movie Ghosted. In terms of superhero flicks from Marvel and DC, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Shazam! Fury of the Gods left audiences feeling the aftereffects of the current reconstruction of both cinematic universes. In addition, other surprising releases, like 65 and Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, didn’t sit right with viewers and critics, which would eventually lead to their obscurity.
However, that doesn’t mean this year hasn’t had bad releases either. Michael B. Jordan’s Creed III certainly resonated emotionally with audiences and Scream VI was another killer addition to the long-lasting franchise. John Wick: Chapter 4 brought a fulfilling end to the action-packed thriller series and recently, Evil Dead Rise enticed audiences to a new family-focused story with the elements of the demonic supernatural. Furthermore, fans are anticipating the releases of the next movie in Sony’s animated Spider-Man universe, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, as well as Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, the next movie in the newly rebooted Transformers cinematic universe brought from Bumblebee.
In addition, May has several movies for audiences in theaters to choose from. From the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 to Fast X and The Little Mermaid, May isn’t short of movies that families and general movie-goers can enjoy.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Release Date: May 5, 2023
James Gunn’s thrilling finale to the Guardians of the Galaxy series will head to theaters this week, saying goodbye to the cosmic-faring team that Marvel fans have loved since the first Guardians back in 2016. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 follows the lovable, ragtag group of mercenaries led by Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) as they face a new cosmic threat in the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji), who seeks to perfect the universe in his own image. Along the way, the team comes across a being, Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), whose mission is to hunt the Guardians down as well as Gamora (Zoe Saldana) from the past.
The cast also includes Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Vin Diesel as Groot, Bradley Cooper as Rocket Raccoon, and Sean Gunn as Kraglin Obfonteri.
Fast X
Release Date: May 19, 2023
The penultimate film of the Fast & Furious franchise, Fast X, will finally begin to tie-up a story that has expanded far beyond the ash-paved roads. Directed by Louis Leterrier, the film sees a retired Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel), who’s settled down with a family of his own, thrown back into action by Dante Reyes (Jason Mamoa), who wants to get revenge on Toretto for the death of his father in 2011’s Fast Five. Reuniting with old family and friends like Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej Parker (Chris “Ludacris” Bridges), Toretto must protect those he loves from the ever-threat of Cypher (Charlize Theron), who’s teamed up with Reyes and his forces to take down Toretto.
The Little Mermaid
Release Date: May 26, 2023
In a close return to form for Disney, The Little Mermaid live-action remake seeks to follow the original story of the 1989 animated feature while adding new materials to flesh out this film. The Little Mermaid follows mermaid princess Ariel (Halle Bailey), who seeks to venture top-side and explore the human world. After saving Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King), Ariel wants to live her life with him and makes a deal with the sea witch Ursula (Melissa McCarthy) to become human. Accompanied by Scuttle (Awkwafina) and Flounder (Jacob Tremblay), Ariel must decide whether to live within humanity for love and abandon her ocean home with her sisters.
Hypnotic
Release Date: May 12, 2023
Later this month, Robert Rodriguez’s sci-fi action thriller Hypnotic will head to theaters. The film follows Ben Affleck as a persistent detective in search of his missing daughter who gets involved with a conspiracy involving a secret government program that can transform friends into foes. Hypnotic also stars Alice Braga, J. D. Pardo, Hala Finley, Dayo Okeniyi, Jeff Fahey, Jackie Earle Haley, and William Fichtner. As a Rodriguez family collaboration, Hypnotic is a close project long in the making, with the movie’s development hidden in obscurity since 2002 until now.
Fool’s Paradise
Release Date: May 12, 2023
Later this month, Always Sunny star (and resident Green Man/Luigi) Charlie Day will have his directorial debut in Fool’s Paradise. The movie follows a recently released mute man (Day) in the streets of Hollywood as he suddenly grows to stardom after pairing with a desperate publicist (Ken Jeong). Taking the persona of a method actor who refuses to do anything (plus looking like him) the man takes the name “Latte Pronto” as his status as a celebrity and movie star reaches the peaks of the industry without his say in it. The movie also stars Ray Liotta, Kate Beckinsale, Adrien Brody, Common, Jason Sudeikis, Edie Falco, and John Malkovich.
Knights of the Zodiac
Release Date: May 12, 2023
Releasing alongside Hypnotic, Toei Animation’s live-action adaptation of the Saint Seiya manga, Knights of the Zodiac, will be heading to theaters with its current runs in Latin America and Japan. The movie follows Seiya (Mackenyu), a persistent teenager on a search for his abducted sister who accidentally gains new magical powers. Soon, he gets thrown into a mystical war with saints and cultists fighting one another and encounters a reincarnated goddess searching for the right warrior. The movie also stars Famke Janssen, Madison Iseman, Diego Tinoco, Mark Dacascos, Nick Stahl, and Sean Bean.
What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Release Date: May 5, 2023
Also heading to theaters this week, the love rom-com What’s Love Got To Do With It? will be coming this Friday. Helmed by acclaimed director Shekhar Kapur and the producers of Love Actually and Bridget Jones’s’ Diary comes a heartfelt rom-com about Kaz (Shazad Latif) a man looking to fall in love and settle down, Zoe (Lily James) his documentarian next door neighbor that is a dating app pro but strikes out on dates, and their tight knit families. The movie also stars Emma Thompson, Shabana Azmi and Sajal Aly.
The Machine
Release Date: May 26, 2023
In contrast to The Little Mermaid, The Machine, Bert Kreischer’s fantastical bloody story, will also be brought to the big screen. The crazy story of “The Machine” has been widely known in the comedy space, with Kreischer’s retelling of the story getting big laughs everywhere he goes. The movie is adapted from Kreischer’s own experience with the Russian mob during his college trip in Russia, invertedly helping the mob to rob a train while he and his father (Mark Hamill) are kidnapped. The movie also stars Iva Babić, Stephanie Kurtzuba and Jessica Gabor.
