May’s must-sees include Park Eun-bin’s superhero K-comedy, Lim Ji-yeon back in mean girl mode

The Wonderfools

Debuts on Netflix on May 15

This South Korean adventure comedy follows a group of misfits who unexpectedly gain superpowers and band together to save the world.

It reunites director Yoo In-sik and actress Park Eun-bin, the duo behind the hit legal comedy series Extraordinary Attorney Woo (2022), in which Park played a brilliant neurodivergent lawyer.

Their new show is set in 1999, at the peak of Y2K doomsday fever.

Park plays Chae-ni, a quirky train wreck, while K-idol Cha Eun-woo is Un-jeong, a socially awkward civil servant.

Together, they investigate a series of mysterious disappearances in their town and try to protect it from a looming threat.

Why watch it: If you enjoyed the eccentric but heartfelt storytelling of Extraordinary Attorney Woo, this millennial-coded superhero story looks like a repeat of that formula.

It is the first on-screen collaboration between popular stars Park (The King’s Affection, 2021) and Cha (True Beauty, 2020 to 2021), although the latter’s involvement in a 20 billion won (S$17.3 million) tax scandal may overshadow The Wonderfools’ debut.

Spider-Noir

Debuts on Prime Video on May 27

American actor Nicolas Cage plays an older and more grizzled version of Spider-Man in this stylish re-imagining of the iconic comic-book character.

The Oscar-winning star (Leaving Las Vegas, 1995) is Ben Reilly, an ageing private investigator in 1930s New York City.

Down on his luck and jaded, he struggles to reconcile his current life with his past as the masked vigilante known as The Spider.

Based on the Marvel comic Spider-Man Noir, this character appeared in the acclaimed animated feature Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018), where he was voiced by Cage.

Spider-Man Noir is set in a separate universe from the main Marvel films, and leans heavily into the film noir aesthetic.

Both a black-and-white and full colour version will be released, no doubt to avoid losing viewers who cannot fathom watching anything in monochrome.

Reilly is pulled into a web of corruption and encounters an assortment of classic noir archetypes, from an Irish crime boss (Brendan Gleeson) to a mysterious femme fatale played by Chinese-American actress Li Jun Li (Sinners, 2025).

Why watch it: This Spider-Man adaptation targets a more mature viewer. Expect a gritty, hard-boiled mystery focused more on street-level detective work than world-ending spectacle, all delivered with Cage’s signature intensity.

The Boroughs

Debuts on Netflix on May 21

Matt and Ross Duffer, who created the hit show Stranger Things (2016 to 2025), are back with yet another series blending science fiction, horror and the supernatural.

But instead of a gang of kids in a small town, we get the other end of the demographic spectrum: a group of retirees in a desert community.

As with Stranger Things, the protagonists encounter an otherworldly threat – and this one seems to be harvesting the thing they cherish most: time.

Led by Sam (Alfred Molina) and Renee (Geena Davis), the group must pool their decades of life experience to fight this hidden paranormal force, which the authorities refuse to acknowledge.

Why watch it: It is Stranger Things meets Cocoon – the Oscar-winning 1985 Ron Howard film featuring aliens and retirees.

The Duffer Brothers are only executive producers here, not the creators, but the trailer suggests this is the spiritual successor to the show that put them on the map.

The cast is also stacked with veteran stars and character actors, including Davis (Beetlejuice, 1988), Molina (Spider-Man 2, 2004), Alfre Woodard (Miss Evers’ Boys, 1997) and Denis O’Hare (True Blood, 2008 to 2014).

My Royal Nemesis

Debuts on Netflix on May 8

A time-travelling fantasy, this South Korean romantic comedy stars actress Lim Ji-yeon as a legendary villainess from the Joseon era who finds herself in present-day Seoul.

Ambitious royal concubine Kang Dan-shim (Lim) meets an untimely death – but wakes up centuries later in the body of Shin Seo-ri, a struggling actress who plays bit parts in historical dramas.

As Dan-shim tries to make sense of 2026 technology and norms, she crosses paths with Cha Se-gye (Heo Nam-jun), a cynical young chaebol heir. Sparks fly as the two strong personalities clash.

Why watch it: Fans who discovered Lim when she played the mean girl in revenge thriller The Glory (2022 to 2023) – one of Netflix’s most-watched non-English series of all time – will be glad to see a return to form.