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We noted this last month<\/u>, but we really<\/em> mean it in May: Things are starting to wrap up big-time on TV in preparation for the deadline for Emmy submission (which is the end of this month). That means some big finales to long-running standout series are all dropping in May, but don\u2019t worry \u2013 there are plenty of other things to intrigue you this month, as well as Big Prestige Series Finales.<\/p>\nIn fact, if you\u2019re a superhero fan, this might be one of the most packed months for TV since\u2026 well, since the last<\/em> one. Last month we had Daredevil, The Boys, and Invincible. Invincible is now done; the other two, not so much. And there\u2019s at least one more hero on TV ready to punch some bad guys and romance some dames in one of the biggest TV superhero events in the past several decades (we\u2019ll get to why in a second), as well as an anti-hero, guns out, in his own special episode.<\/p>\nNot a big superhero fan? That\u2019s okay. There\u2019s plenty more to stream in addition to the costumed wonders, from action heroes and spin-offs to Stranger Things creators, the Duffer Brothers, producing an all-star sci-fi spectacle that\u2019s best described as \u201cOlder Things.\u201d<\/p>\n
So without further delay, let\u2019s get into our 10 most anticipated TV shows to stream in May 2026. And there\u2019s so much<\/em> we\u2019re anticipating, we fudged it a little to get past 10.<\/p>\n(Note: This list is presented in release date order.)<\/p>\n
Daredevil: Born Again, Season 2 Finale (May 5)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nWhatever you\u2019ve thought about the rest of the season, the Daredevil: Born Again finale on Disney+ is a certified mic drop banger, no joke. Without getting into spoilers, the thrilling episode concludes the Mayor Kingpin storyline with Wilson Fisk (Vincent D\u2019Onofrio) and Daredevil (Charlie Cox) facing off in a game-changing hour of television that will likely find Marvel fans screaming so loud, you\u2019ll be able to hear the noise from space.<\/p>\n
High praise? Perhaps, but the hour delivers on a level many MCU productions haven\u2019t quite hit over the past few years \u2013 killer action, a propulsive plot, excellent acting from the full ensemble, and the sort of moments that are made to break the internet. We\u2019ve already seen the episode \u2013 in case you couldn\u2019t tell \u2013 but can\u2019t wait<\/em> to watch it again. And trust us when we say that you should watch this one live. You do not<\/em> want to be spoiled when everyone is absolutely losing their minds and rushing online immediately afterward.<\/p>\nThankfully, a third season of Daredevil: Born Again is already in production. But even with that news, after what happens in this finale? It\u2019s going to be a long, long wait until 2027.<\/p>\n
Devil May Cry, Season 2<\/strong> <\/strong><\/em>(May 12)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nAfter a well-regarded first season of the Capcom adaptation, Devil May Cry is back on Netflix for Season 2, and showrunner Adi Shanker is extremely<\/em> hyping up his own creation.<\/p>\n\u201cSeason 2 is just way, way, way bigger in terms of scope and scale,\u201d Shankar told IGN<\/u>. \u201cSo it’s the difference between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. That’s the comp. Or Halo 1 and Halo 2, where in terms of just scale and scope \u2013 orders of magnitude bigger and larger. And the tone is just completely different on top of that. The tone is very, very different, so it cuts deeper.\u201d<\/p>\n
Go off, Shankar! While this sort of hubris could be off-putting, the creator has built a great rep on Netflix thanks to the also well-loved Castlevania adaptation. And with demon hunter Dante heading into a bigger world, there is every possibility that Season 2 will top Season 1 of the animated series. More like \u201cDevil May Cry Hooray We Did It,\u201d right? No? Okay.<\/p>\n
The Punisher: One Last Kill (May 12)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nIt\u2019s a little nuts to say something like \u201cwe may finally get the take on the Punisher we\u2019ve always wanted\u201d with the Marvel Special Presentation, The Punisher: One Last Kill, on Disney+. That\u2019s because there have already been three whole movies, two seasons of a Netflix series, and multiple appearances on Daredevil and Daredevil: Born Again (not to mention his upcoming appearance in Spider-Man: Brand New Day). But One Last Kill has the potential to outdo them all.<\/p>\n
Co-written by star Jon Bernthal and Reinaldo Marcus Green (who also directs), the team is taking their collab from the well-regarded HBO series, We Own This City, and the movie King Richard to delve deep into the psychology of Frank Castle. And Bernthal loves<\/em> getting deep into the psychology of Marvel\u2019s most damaged character; sorry, Moon Knight.<\/p>\nWhile we don\u2019t know a ton about the plot of the thing, rumors point to it exploring the absolutely bonkers Ma Gnucci storyline from Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon\u2019s run on The Punisher at Marvel Comics\u2026 and if so, stay away from the zoo. The special will feature the return of Jason R. Moore\u2019s Curtis Hoyle from the original Netflix series, and it will possibly explain why Frank wasn\u2019t tearing up the streets during the events of Daredevil: Born Again. Hey, as long as we get to hear Bernthal say \u201cone batch, two batch,\u201d this\u2019ll be a winner in our books.<\/p>\n
Jack Ryan: Ghost War (May 20)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nJust like with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Jack Ryan: Ghost War does not, sadly, feature John Krasinski\u2019s Jack Ryan battling ghosts. Instead, this serves as a continuation of the four seasons of the hit series on Prime Video, as well as the third film reboot of the franchise after movies starring Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck (which comprise one continuity), and Chris Pine, which stalled after one film.<\/p>\n
So what\u2019s Jack Ryan up to this<\/em> time? He\u2019s trying to live a quiet civilian life when, of course, spy stuff intrudes \u2013 an off-the-books black ops team called Starling that\u2019s doing what they\u2019re trained to do. Only problem? That\u2019s all bad, bad stuff. So Ryan gets sucked back into action, teaming up with Sienna Miller\u2019s fellow super-spy.<\/p>\nAlso starring in the movie directed by Andrew Bernstein and co-written by Krasinski and Aaron Rabin are Wendell Pierce, Michael Kelly, Betty Gabriel, and more. Will this launch a new film franchise, or merely serve as a capstone to the TV series? And when will<\/em> Jack Ryan finally fight ghosts?<\/p>\nThe Boroughs (May 21)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/output><\/p>\n
After finishing up the epic run of Stranger Things, its creators \u2013 the Duffer Brothers \u2013 are expanding their brand in a big way by doing the TV equivalent of franchising (i.e., executive producing). That includes the recently released Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen; the animated spin-off, Stranger Things: Tales from \u201985; and the upcoming series, The Boroughs.<\/p>\n
While all three share elements of the Netflix mega-hit \u2013 particularly Tales from \u201985, which takes place directly between Seasons 2 and 3 of the series \u2013 The Boroughs is much closer in tone than the odd horror of Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen. But instead of a bunch of kids battling supernatural monsters in a pastiche of every \u201980s movie? Think \u201cOlder Things,\u201d with a cast of aging superstars running around like<\/em> kids, battling supernatural monsters in a pastiche of every \u201980s movie.<\/p>\nThe show stars Alfred Molina as Sam, a man mourning his wife and ending up \u2013 against his will \u2013 in the middle of the massive retirement community of the title, which is stuck in the middle of the desert. While Sam begrudgingly befriends his neighbors, played by Bill Pullman, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Denis O\u2019Hare, and Clarke Peters, a monstrous creature is stalking the Boroughs\u2026 and they have to team up to find out what\u2019s going on in order to save the world.<\/p>\n
Fluffy, fun, and featuring some out-of-this-world special effects and neat retro-future set design, nothing may be the next Stranger Things, but The Boroughs might come real<\/em> close.<\/p>\nSpider-Noir (May 25\/27)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nThe first live-action Spider-Man TV series since the 1970s, Spider-Noir is not the same character featured in the animated Spider-Verse movies, though it does star the same guy \u2013 Nicolas Cage as a superhero\/private eye named Ben Reilly.<\/p>\n
Releasing both in black-and-white and in color, the show also premieres first on MGM+ (May 25) and then on Prime Video (May 27). It\u2019ll also be released in full, with all eight episodes hitting on the same day. It\u2019s a wild release \u201cschedule\u201d for the \u2013 did we mention this part? \u2013 first live-action Spider-Man series in almost fifty years<\/em>.<\/p>\nThe alternate 1930s setting features plenty of film noir riffs on iconic Spider-Man characters, including Lamorne Morris as nose-to-the-ground journalist Robbie Robertson, Li Jun Li as femme fatale Cat Hardy, and villains including Silvermane (Brendan Gleeson), Electro (Joe Massingill), and others. The real draw, though, is Cage once again putting on superhero tights; even in his fallow days, he\u2019s never turned in a non-interesting performance. Will this latest foray launch a new corner of the Spider-Verse for Sony, or will it be another 50 years until a live-action Spidey swings his way onto the small screen once again?<\/p>\n
Star City (May 29)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\nFor All Mankind is the little Apple TV show that could, remarkably continuing well past the expiration date of most streaming series, with a currently running fifth season (the finale streams May 29), and a sixth and final season planned for next year. The alternate universe series posited: What if the Russians won the space race? They\u2019ve then diverged further and further from our own world\u2019s history as the series continued.<\/p>\n
What Star City presupposes is: What if we rewound the clock again<\/em> and saw this whole story from the Russian perspective? Don\u2019t worry, this isn\u2019t an alternate history of an alternate history \u2013 what if America won the space race\u2026 oh wait, we did \u2013 but rather a look at what the Soviet side of things was up to while everything was spiraling wildly on the American side.<\/p>\nThe series stars Rhys Ifans (speaking of Spider-Man villains!) as the Chief Designer of the Russian space program alongside Agnes O\u2019Casey, Alice Englert, and others. It\u2019s also curious for a \u201cfranchise\u201d that has kept Joel Kinnaman around in increasingly ludicrous old age makeup, but several roles from the original series have been recast for this new one.<\/p>\n
Euphoria, Season 3 Finale (May 31)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/output><\/p>\n
Not much is known about the Season 3 finale of HBO\u2019s Euphoria, though it may also be the series<\/em> finale given how much time passed between Seasons 2 and 3, the rising stars of the cast, and the fact that really \u2013 is there that much more left to say<\/em> in the show?<\/p>\nLook, the critical response to Season 3 has been mixed at best, but visually, there\u2019s nothing else like Sam Levinson\u2019s creation on TV. The story of Rue (Zendaya), Cassie (Sydney Sweeney), and the rest remains compelling and watchable, and as of this writing, it\u2019s a huge hit too, with the Season 3 premiere jumping 44% in viewership<\/u> from the Season 2 premiere.<\/p>\n
So will they really, definitively end<\/em> Rue\u2019s story? Will she get to ride off into the sunset with Jules (Hunter Schafer) if so? Will Cassie find the fame and fortune she craves on OnlyFans? And perhaps most importantly, will there be excessive amounts of nudity, sexual content, and drug use before things come to a close? On the latter: Definitely, 100%, no question, yes<\/em>.<\/p>\n