Welcome to Culture Hound, InsideHook’s deep dive into the month’s most important cultural happenings, pop and otherwise. (Note: you can find our monthly book guide a little later this week.)
WATCH: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Do we need another prequel, let alone one devoted to a character only introduced in the fourth Mad Max film? Given how amazing the character of Furiosa was in 2015’s Fury Road — and that plot seems secondary here to post-apocalyptic road rage — the answer is appropriately yes. (5/24, theaters)
- More new films coming to the big screen and small: The Fall Guy (5/3, theaters); I Saw the TV Glow (5/3, theaters); Unfrosted (5/3, Netflix); Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (5/10, theaters); Back to Black (5/17, theaters)
WELCOME BACK: Behind the Music
The revived music documentary series seems to have elevated its production budget but still offers the same tried-and-true format: telling the rags-to-riches (and occasionally back-to-rags) stories behind some of yesteryear’s biggest acts. This season, those acts include Trace Adkins, Bell Biv DeVoe and, oddly, Wolfgang Van Halen (who, besides his lineage, seems pretty current). (5/1, Paramount+)
- More returning TV shows: Jeopardy! Masters (5/1, ABC); Welcome to Wrexham (5/2, FX and Hulu); Hacks (5/2, Max); Doctor Who (5/10, Disney+); Bridgerton (5/16, Netflix)
BINGE: Dark Matter
Based on the book by Blake Crouch, this tale of kidnapping and the multiverse is both a thriller and a love story. Featuring Joel Edgerton and Jennifer Connelly, the miniseries adaptation looks visually stunning as well. (5/8, Apple TV+)
- More new TV series and miniseries: A Man in Full (5/2, Netflix); Star Wars: Tales of the Empire (5/4, Disney+); Bodkin (5/9, Netflix); Eric (5/30, Netflix)
Why “Chuck and Buck” Is the Most Underrated Movie About Male Friendship
Long before “The White Lotus,” Mike White proved that every film about friendship must also be a romance
LISTEN: Dua Lipa
Four years after the blockbuster Future Nostalgia, the English singer’s third release (Radical Optimism) finds her disco-pop stylings merged with flashes of psychedelica. The album is also an homage to U.K. rave culture and Britpop, according to the singer herself. Whatever the results, expect to hear it all summer long.
- More new music: Kings of Leon (5/10); Billie Eilish (5/17); Beth Gibbons (5/17); Lenny Kravitz (5/24); Crowded House (5/31)
STUDY: John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in LA
The popular comedian explores Los Angeles with his showbiz buddies, right around the time of the Netflix Is a Joke festival. It’s live and will feature everyone from Chris Rock to David Letterman. This concept might not always work, but there are bound to be some fun moments. (5/3, Netflix)
- More new documentaries and specials: The Contestant (5/2, Hulu); Black Twitter: A People’s History (5/9, Hulu); Nikki Glaser: Someday You’ll Die (5/11, Max); The Beach Boys (5/24, Disney+); Jim Henson Idea Man (5/31, Disney+)
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