By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.

Amazon’s Prime Video this week (May 12-18, 2024) plans to add 10 new TV shows and movies to its Prime membership lineup. Here’s the four you should definitely watch, in my humble opinion:

American Fiction (2023)
Jeffrey Wright stars in this smart and sweet satire of racial stereotypes in our culture and literary world. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, American Fiction features Wright as a serious (and somewhat pretentious) author who discovers the ticket to fame and fortune as an African-American writer is feigning he’s a criminal who lives and breathes the hood. The publishing world, filled with white do-gooders, anoint the fake novelist as a literary genius much to Wright’s chagrin. American Fiction is a rare film that challenges perceptions of race and perceptions themselves which makes it worth a watch. There’s also a standout performance by Sterling K. Brown as the newly-out-of-the-closet brother to Jeffrey Wright’s protagonist. Debuts Tuesday, May 14.

The Academy of Country Music Awards
For the third straight year, Prime Video will offer an exclusive livestream of the annual music-fest from the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas. The show, which will stream at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday (May 16), will be hosted by Reba McEntire. The Red Carpet show will begin at 7 p.m. ET.

WNBA
Amazon will again be the exclusive national streaming partner of the WNBA with 21 games this season. The first game will be 7 p.m. ET on Thursday (May 16) with the New York Liberty facing Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever.

Pearl An X-traordinary Origin Story (2022)
Mia Goth stars as an unhinged young woman whose unrelenting ambition to become a movie star leads to a bloodbath on a Texas farm in 1918. Pearl, a prequel to director Ti West’s X, may be the superior film here with Goth delivering one of the best (and hypnotic) performances of the decade. (Martin Scorsese calls Pearl “mesmerizing” and, as usual, he is right.) In July, there will be a third in the horror trilogy called Maxxxine with Goth’s X character in LA during the Night Stalker murder spree in the 1980s. Go Goth. Go West, young film goers. This is exciting movie-making in the works. (Note: X is now available on Netflix.) Debuts Thursday, May 16.

Complete List of New Titles Coming to Amazon Prime Video This Week:

Tuesday, May 14
American Fiction (2023)
BlacKkKlansman (2018)
Muppets From Space (2020)

Wednesday, May 15
Fifty Shades Of Black (2016)

Thursday, May 16
Creed (2015)
Pearl: An X-traordinary Origin Story (2022)
Academy of Country Music Awards (2024)
Outer Range Season 2 (2024)
WNBA (2024)

Friday, May 17
99 (2024)

Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.

The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.