- Play Hard
- 6th May 2026
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What’s on at the cinema this May
May is the month for new movies on the big screen
Whether you’re after high fashion drama, galaxy-spanning adventure, psychological horror or a feel-good music movie, there is something for everyone hitting the big screen this month.
Here’s everything you need to know about what’s on and when…
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2
Thursday 1st May
Fashion is back and better than ever. 20 years after their iconic turns as Miranda, Andy, Emily and Nigel, Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci return to the fashionable streets of New York City and the sleek offices of Runway Magazine. Based on the 2013 novel Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns, this is the eagerly awaited sequel to the 2006 phenomenon that genuinely defined a generation. If this one isn’t already in the diary, it needs to be.
BILLIE EILISH: HIT ME HARD AND SOFT – THE TOUR LIVE IN 3D
Thursday 8th May
She changed music. Now she’s coming to a cinema near you. Captured during her sold-out world tour, this innovative concert experience brings one of the most celebrated artists of her generation to the big screen in a way that feels genuinely unlike anything you’ve seen before. Directed by Academy Award winners James Cameron and Billie Eilish herself, this is the next best thing to being front row. Grab your friends and go.
MORTAL KOMBAT 2
Thursday 8th May
The legendary video game franchise is back on the big screen in all its brutal, gloriously over-the-top glory. This time, the fan favourite champions face off against one another in the ultimate battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn, who threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm. Karl Urban takes centre stage as Johnny Cage, leading a brilliant ensemble cast of returning stars and some exciting new faces. If you loved the first one, this delivers everything you came for.
CHARLIE THE WONDERDOG
Thursday 15th May
Owen Wilson, a lovable dog with superpowers and an evil neighbourhood cat with plans for world domination. This all-new animated family adventure has everything you need for a brilliant family cinema trip. When Danny’s loyal best friend is mysteriously abducted by aliens and returns home with incredible new abilities, it’s up to Charlie the Wonderdog to save the day and discover the true meaning of heroism. The kids will love it, and honestly, so will you.
THE CHRISTOPHERS
Thursday 15th May
Ian McKellen, James Corden, Jessica Gunning and Michaela Coel in a Steven Soderbergh comedy about art, forgery and family greed? Yes please. Julian Sklar, a once-famous artist who has retreated into self-imposed seclusion, has two estranged children who enlist a young painter and sometime-forger to pose as his assistant and gain access to a series of unfinished canvases – all in a bid to secure an inheritance for themselves. Sharp, funny and brilliantly cast. One of the most interesting things on screens this month.
FINDING EMILY
Thursday 22nd May
Light, fun and genuinely sweet. When a lovesick musician is given the wrong number for his dream girl, he teams up with a driven psychology student to track her down. Together, they spark a hilarious campus-wide frenzy that tests both their hearts and ambitions along the way. The perfect cinema date night pick for May.
MY MOTHER’S WEDDING
Thursday 22nd May
Everyone loves a wedding and a family row. Three sisters from very different walks of life return home to celebrate a momentous occasion: the third wedding of their twice-widowed mother, Diana, played by Kristin Scott Thomas. As the weekend unfolds in a typically chaotic fashion, Katherine (Scarlett Johansson), a captain in the Royal Navy, Victoria (Sienna Miller), a Hollywood star, and Georgina (Emily Beecham), a palliative nurse, are forced to reassess their childhoods and make some tough choices of their own. A brilliant ensemble cast in what looks like a warm, funny and emotionally satisfying watch.
PASSENGER
Thursday 22nd May
After a young couple witness a gruesome highway accident, they soon realise they didn’t leave the crash scene alone. A demonic presence called the Passenger has latched on and won’t stop until it claims them both, turning their van life adventure into an absolute nightmare. If you’re a horror fan looking for something that will keep you on edge from start to finish, this is your May pick.
THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU
Thursday 22nd May
This is the one Star Wars fans have been waiting for. The evil Empire has fallen, Imperial warlords are scattered across the galaxy, and the fledgling New Republic has enlisted legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin and his young apprentice Grogu to help protect everything the Rebellion fought for. Directed by Jon Favreau, the cast includes Pedro Pascal and Sigourney Weaver. It’s also worth noting this is the first Star Wars theatrical release since The Rise of Skywalker back in 2019, and that alone makes it a big deal.
BACKROOMS
Thursday 29th May
A strange doorway appears in the basement of a furniture showroom. A therapist searches for her patient who has vanished into a terrifying alternate dimension – a maze of never-ending yellow office rooms that exists beyond time and space, where victims become trapped in a sterile, inescapable void. Based on the cult hit YouTube series, this psychological horror brings one of the internet’s most unsettling concepts to the big screen in feature form. Creepy, mind-bending and genuinely original.
POWER BALLAD
Thursday 29th May
From the director of Sing Street and Once comes the feel-good film of the summer. When Rick (Paul Rudd), a past-his-prime wedding singer, meets fading boy band star Danny (Nick Jonas) during a gig, the two bond over a late-night jam session. But when Danny turns one of Rick’s songs into a hit that reignites his own career, Rick sets out to reclaim the recognition he believes he deserves, even if it means risking everything he cares about. A story about music, self-respect, friendship and the price of ambition. John Carney doing what John Carney does best. We cannot wait for this one.
Chris Kingston
Entertainment Writer
Chris is Laura's brother and the font of all knowledge when it comes to anything related to TV, film and books. He provides our popular round-ups on what to watch at the cinema, the TV not to miss, and new cultural releases.
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