YNOT at the Movies

Who knew sheep could be more capable detectives than a trained police officer? It turns out they can, and quite convincingly at that. "The Sheep Detectives" (Ireland/UK/Germany/USA 2026 | 109 min.) is a warmhearted, witty romp that never pretends to be anything more than what it is. And for the most part, that's perfectly fine.

The story follows a flock of sheep who, after years of their shepherd reading them detective novels each night, have secretly developed the ability to solve mysteries among themselves. When their beloved owner George Hardy (Hugh Jackman) is found dead one morning, the flock takes matters into their own hooves.

On the human side, an ambitious young reporter Elliot Matthews (Nicholas Galitzine) abandons his assignment covering a local cultural festival to chase the murder story, while the awkward Officer Tim Derry (Nicholas Braun) stumbles through the official investigation.

The arrival of Rebecca Hampstead (Molly Gordon), George's previously unknown daughter, immediately raises suspicions, as does the sharp-tongued lawyer Lydia Harbottle (Emma Thompson), who sweeps into the village in a Mercedes-Benz to read George's will and ends up far more entangled in the mystery than she expected.

Lurking in the background are the village butcher Ham Gilyard (Conleth Hill), who makes no secret of wanting the sheep for himself, the neighboring shepherd Caleb Merrow (Tosin Cole), with whom George had an unresolved quarrel before his death, and Beth Pennock (Hong Chau), who is secretly in love with George. It's a classic whodunit setup, and the film leans into it with genuine affection for the genre.

The sheep themselves are the undisputed stars. Brought to life through photorealistic CGI by a London-based visual effects studio specializing in computer-generated characters, they're undeniably cute and fluffy, with advanced body simulation tools used to capture the natural movement and texture of real sheep. The voice cast makes them even more compelling. Lily (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus), the self-described smartest sheep in the flock, leads the investigation with sharp intelligence and warmth, while Sebastian (voiced by Bryan Cranston), the brooding loner sheep , provides a sidekick. Sir Ritchfield (voiced by Patrick Stewart), the elder statesman of the flock , delivers his lines with magnificent pomposity, and Ronnie and Reggie (both voiced by Brett Goldstein), the rowdy sheep brothers, steal every scene they share with rapid-fire bickering.

Nicholas Braun is a comic highlight as the hapless Officer Derry, and Emma Thompson brings an effortless authority that elevates every scene she's in. Hugh Jackman, by contrast, has comparatively little to do, the unfortunate consequence of playing the murder victim. He's warm and charming in his limited screen time, but George exists primarily to be mourned and investigated rather than truly known.

Director Kyle Balda, whose previous work was entirely in animation including "Minions" (2015, makes his live-action directorial debut here, and handles the transition with confidence. The Oxfordshire setting is picturesque without being distracting, and crucially for younger viewers, the accents never veer into incomprehensible British thicket territory.

This film is unambiguously aimed at school-age children, and on that front it largely delivers. It's an entertaining popcorn movie, the kind you happily sit through with a kid on a weekend afternoon, occasionally laughing louder than they do.

"The Sheep Detectives" opens in theaters on Friday, May 6, 2026.