“Wildwood” is a 2026 American stop-motion animated fantasy film co-produced and directed by Travis Knight and written by Chris Butler, based on Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis’s 2011 novel. Produced by LAIKA studios, the film stars Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Awkwafina, Angela Bassett, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day, Amandla Stenberg, Jemaine Clement, Len Cariou, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, Tom Waits, and Richard E. Grant. In the film, a teenage girl named Prue (Lee) and her classmate Curtis (Tremblay) enter an enchanted forest to search for her infant brother after he is abducted. They find a manor and learn about a coming war from a mysterious woman who tragically lost her son. Development began in September 2011, just weeks after the release of Meloy’s novel, when LAIKA announced plans to adapt it as an animated feature. Production was confirmed in September 2021, with Knight directing and co-producing with Arianne Sutner, and Butler writing the script. The feature was produced at LAIKA’s studio facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, with Caleb Deschanel as cinematographer. With a theatrical runtime of 131 minutes, the film is the longest stop-motion-animated film and, in terms of overall craftsmanship, the biggest achievement in stop-motion animation history for sheer scale and difficulty. The film premiered at the BFI London Film Festival, where critics widely acclaimed it as not only the best animated film of the year, but the best to ever come out of LAIKA Studios. Knight was kind enough to lend us an hour of his time as he came into the studio and spoke with us about what drew him to Colin Meloy’s novel, the painstaking work that goes into the art of stop-motion, his feelings on the current state of animation, what is next for himself and LAIKA Studios, what winning an Oscar would mean to him, and more, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out “Wildwood,” which will be released in theaters by Fathom Entertainment on October 23rd. Thank you, and enjoy!
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