Amazon Prime Video in May: Don't miss these new shows and movies

With the end of one month comes the beginning of another, and in the crowded world of the best streaming services, that can mean bafflement at what's coming out soon. If you're a Prime Video subscriber, you might be looking at May and wondering what Amazon's cooking up in terms of new releases.

The good news is that there are multiple really interesting new original movies hitting Prime Video this month, along with some fascinating series to sink into – depending on where you are in the world. So, for five highlights that you shouldn't miss, be sure to keep reading.

Another Simple Favor

Another Simple Favor - Official Trailer | Prime Video - YouTube

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• Streaming from: 1 May

This steamy sequel looks like it should be super stylish and stylised, revisiting the story from the first movie, A Simple Favor. That outing saw sexual tension segue surprisingly naturally into actual murder, but it looks like Blake Lively's character Emily isn't done with things.

She's out of prison after a few years, and has shacked up with a new man in the hope of moving on, apparently. Still, inviting Anna Kendrick as Stephanie doesn't really fit into that narrative, and it looks an awful lot like revenge could be on the wedding day menu this time out. Expect brilliant outfits, saucy dialogue and some really fun sequences as things go off the rails again.

The Assessment

The Assessment | Official Trailer | Prime Video - YouTube

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• Streaming from: 8 May

For those looking to queue up a far more serious movie, one that has some pretty crazy sci-fi ideas at its heart, The Assessment could also be a great fit. It stars Elizabeth Olsen and Himesh Patel in a dystopian future where you have to prove your suitability to be parents in a bizarre assessment.

The hopeful couple are visited by Alicia Vikander as their assessor, and while she starts off observing them in fairly normal ways, the trailer makes it obvious that she'll soon start testing their limits way more deviously. This could be a tour de force for Vikander, but Patel and Olsen are capable of great heights too, so Amazon could well have a sleeper sci-fi hit on its hands.

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6

The Handmaid's Tale | Season 6 Teaser | Hulu - YouTube

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• Streaming from: 3 May

If you're in the US, you'll already have had the option of using a Hulu subscription to enjoy the return of this hugely popular show, but here in the UK it'll hit Prime Video in May. We'll return to the grim world of Gilead one more time, to see whether the Handmaidens can successfully overthrow the terrible order of power that put them into subservience.

Season 6 is still ongoing even in the US, but a Rotten Tomatoes score of 94% as it stands suggests that its final season should end things in style. As always, it won't be for the faint of heart, and there could be some major twists before its finally buries its hatchet.

Nine Perfect Strangers

• Streaming from: 22 May

It's been quite a while since the first season of Nine Perfect Strangers, and while we don't have a trailer for its second run of episodes yet, Amazon has mentioned a little about what we can expect. Masha Dmitrichenko, played by Nicole Kidman, will once again bring nine strangers together for a week of apparent wellness.

Things will definitely get weird, though, just like they did last time – with the second series set in the snowbound Austrian Alps for a different flavour visually. From the same team as Big Little Lies, and with Nicole Kidman on fine form, it should be unsettling fun.

Clarkson's Farm Season 4

• Streaming from: 23 May

One of Amazon's more unexpected successes in the streaming era has been Clarkson's Farm, a collaboration with Jeremy Clarkson that has actually now outlived the higher-budget The Grand Tour. Clarkson's side project of running a farm has become his raison d'etre.

The fourth season should bring more bumbling progress as Clarkson is left to spend time as the sole person in charge of farming operations while Kaleb goes off on a country-wide tour. Whether that spells good news for the farm itself will become clear fairly quickly, I'd imagine, but the show should remain sprightly and informative fun.