Verdict: 4.5/5 — Laika’s most ambitious film is also its darkest, and possibly its masterpiece. Wildwood, the stop-motion studio’s first feature since 2019’s Missing Link, opens in US theaters on Friday, October 23, 2026, with a perfect 100% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes — a first for Laika. The praise is earned: hand-crafted filmmaking of rare ambition that wrestles honestly with grief and fear. Just leave the very young kids at home.
| Film | Wildwood (2026) |
| Director | Travis Knight |
| Screenplay | Chris Butler |
| Based on | The 2011 novel by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis |
| Voice cast | Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Awkwafina, Angela Bassett, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day, Amandla Stenberg, Jemaine Clement, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, Tom Waits, Richard E. Grant |
| Release date | October 23, 2026 (US theaters, Fathom Entertainment; also UK/Ireland) |
| Runtime | 132 minutes (2h 12m) — billed as the longest stop-motion feature ever made |
| MPAA rating | PG-13 (strong fantasy violence, bloody images, thematic material, suicide-related material, brief partial nudity, language) |
| Rotten Tomatoes | 100% critics (avg 8.7/10); 97–98% audience Popcornmeter |
| Metacritic | 86/100 |
| Our verdict | 4.5/5 |
What is Wildwood about?
Twelve-year-old Prue McKeel (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) lives in Portland, Oregon — until crows carry off her baby brother Mac (Arthur Knight). With classmate Curtis Mehlberg (Jacob Tremblay), she enters the Impassable Wilderness to bring him back, facing magical creatures, bandits, talking animals, and a grief-driven figure voiced by Carey Mulligan. It adapts the 2011 novel by Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy and illustrator Carson Ellis.
A stop-motion achievement on an unprecedented scale
Director Travis Knight — Laika’s president and CEO, behind Kubo and the Two Strings and Bumblebee — has called this the studio’s biggest undertaking: some 2,900 shots, 136 practical sets, and 231 practical puppets, with a reported budget around $100 million. Every frame shows it — fog like breath in cold air, fur rippling one painstaking frame at a time.
At 132 minutes, it is the longest stop-motion feature ever made, and Laika’s longest by a wide margin (its earlier films ran about 100 minutes). The length is felt, occasionally. But Knight gives the wilderness room to breathe, and the rhythms feel closer to a novel than to a theme-park ride.
Laika grows up — and goes dark
The number that matters most to parents: PG-13 — Laika’s first, for strong fantasy violence, bloody images, thematic and suicide-related material, brief partial nudity, and language. The studio that once softened its frights with jokes now lets fear sit the way grief actually sits: heavy and unresolvable. The Mulligan storyline gives the film a sorrowful center that is brave for family animation — and genuinely unsettling for small children. Ages 10 and up will be spellbound; under-sevens should sit this one out.
Craft, cast, and music
The voice work is superb: Lee grounds Prue, Tremblay is a warm foil, and the deep bench — Mahershala Ali, Angela Bassett, Awkwafina, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day, Tom Waits, Richard E. Grant — never feels like stunt casting. Dario Marianelli‘s score swells like weather, and The Decemberists contribute three new songs, including “The Better Part of Bravery” over the end credits. Screenwriter Chris Butler (ParaNorman, Missing Link) keeps the book’s heart while sharpening it for the screen.
Where the film wobbles
Near-universal admiration, not unanimity. The Hollywood Reporter called it Laika’s most ambitious effort to date and possibly its masterpiece; Variety hailed a formal achievement and generation-crossing crowd-pleaser; TheWrap placed it among the most astonishing animated films ever made; Collider‘s Aidan Kelley gave it 9/10 (“Laika’s masterpiece”), and ScreenRant‘s Liz Declan a 10/10 (“bound for the Oscars”). The dissent: IndieWire‘s David Ehrlich argued the story doesn’t match the studio’s best, and even admirers note familiar story beats and a long runtime.
Should you see Wildwood?
Yes — on the biggest screen you can find. After its BFI London Film Festival premiere (Oct 11), fan-first screenings in 100+ US theaters (Oct 19), and an AFI Fest opening (Oct 21), it opens in the US and UK/Ireland on October 23 via Fathom Entertainment. Every Laika feature has earned an Oscar nomination, and early chatter positions this as a serious 2027 Best Animated Feature contender. A rare family epic that respects children enough to frighten them. 4.5/5.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Wildwood (2026) about?
Twelve-year-old Prue McKeel and her classmate Curtis venture into the magical Impassable Wilderness beyond Portland to rescue Prue’s baby brother after crows abduct him. The film is based on Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis’s 2011 novel.
Is Wildwood appropriate for kids?
It is rated PG-13 — Laika’s first — for strong fantasy violence, bloody images, thematic and suicide-related material, and language. Best suited to ages 10 and up.
What is Wildwood‘s Rotten Tomatoes score?
As of October 20, 2026: 100% critics (8.7/10 average) — Laika’s first perfect score, ahead of Kubo (97%) and Coraline (91%). Audience Popcornmeter: 97–98%.
How long is Wildwood?
132 minutes — billed as the longest stop-motion feature ever made.
When does Wildwood release?
October 23, 2026 in US theaters (Fathom Entertainment) and in the UK/Ireland.
Is Wildwood based on a book?
Yes. It adapts the 2011 illustrated novel Wildwood by Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy and illustrator Carson Ellis.