Rating: PG | Runtime: 109 minutes
Release Date: May 8th, 2026 (UK/USA)
Studio: Sony Pictures Releasing / Amazon MGM Studios
Director(s): Kyle Balda
Writer(s): Craig Mazin / Craig Mazin (story) / Leonie Swann (novel Three Bags Full)

Remembering hurts.

I kept wondering why the other sheep weren’t named after crime novel icons like Marple for about half the film before realizing Chris O’Dowd’s character was actually called Mopple. So, maybe I was the fool the whole time. You’re off the hook, Officer Derry.

The Sheep Detectives was very cute in premise and execution. Credit director Kyle Balda and screenwriter Craig Mazin for not softening the edges of Leonie Swann’s German-language source too since Hollywood needs more children’s fare that touches on death with as much authenticity and darkness as this one (while also explaining how the pain of grief helps keep lost loved ones alive).

Great tone. Great cast. Great absurdity. (“We’re going to forget all about that in three, two, one …”) And an entertaining mystery that satirizes the genre’s “rules” while also abiding by them. I’ll happily head to France to watch this wooly flock uncover a werewolf’s identity if they decide to green-light the sequel.

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(L to R) Regina Hall as the voice of Cloud, Chris O’Dowd as the voice of Mopple and Julia-Louis Dreyfus as the voice of Lily in THE SHEEP DETECTIVES, from Amazon MGM Studios. Photo credit: Courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios © 2026 Amazon Content Services LLC. All Rights Reserved.