I have to be honest, I’m so excited to see The Sheep Detectives when it premieres on the 2026 movie schedule. The idea of a bunch of sheep solving a murder sounds utterly delightful, and the incredible A-List ensemble cast, which includes Hugh Jackman and Emma Thompson, makes it even better. Now, Project Hail Mary’s co-director Chris Miller has shared his stamp of approval for the film, and it’s doing more for it than its great Rotten Tomatoes numbers.
Again, the trailer for The Sheep Detectives sold me on this movie. However, the very positive reactions for this film directed by Kyle Balda have been making me even more excited about its May 8 release. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 96% rating based on 27 reviews, which is incredibly good, and Variety’s review called the film a “wholesomely offbeat family comedy.” It’s the reactions to those reviews that are making me even more hyped, though, especially since one of them came from beloved director, writer and producer Chris Miller, as he wrote on X:
We helped make this movie and it turned out wonderfully. I showed my family the finished film this weekend and they were all delighted. If you ever wondered what Babe would be like if it were mashed with Knives Out, this is the film for you.
I’m sorry, but Babe meets Knives Out is a pitch I never, ever thought I’d read. Like, mixing a staple childhood movie from the ‘90s that features talking animals with one of the best whodunnits of our time? I didn’t know that was possible. However, I’m here for it, and you better believe it’s motivating me to go see The Sheep Detectives the second it comes out in theaters.
Article continues belowIn hindsight, this comment makes sense too. In The Sheep Detectives, a group of sheep set out to solve the murder of their shepherd, George (Hugh Jackman). So, it has the talking animals and heart of a movie like Babe, and the utterly creative mystery we’ve come to associate with Rian Johnson’s Knives Out movies.
Along with this comparison sparking interest, the fact that Miller was the one who made it also helps sell The Sheep Detectives.
For context, Chris Miller and Phil Lord are executive producers on The Sheep Detectives. This marks their second release this year, right on the heels of the critically acclaimed Project Hail Mary, which has been a massive box office hit in 2026. They also helped bring Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse into the world, and they directed beloved films like 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie. In short, their creativity and ability to take big swings are a massive reason why people love them and their work, and it seems like The Sheep Detectives does just that, too.
Now, if you needed any more convincing about why you should see this movie, it was written by Craig Mazin (The Last of Us) and Leonie Swann. And Bryan Cranston, Brett Goldstein, Patrick Stewart, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Chris O’Dowd and more provide voices for the sheep, while Jackman, Emma Thompson, Molly Gordon, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine and more make up the human cast.
So, in conclusion, what could go wrong with a movie that has been described as Babe meets Knives Out? According to Chris Miller and the reviews, it seems the answer is not much. In fact, according to the numbers, reviews and the director of Project Hail Mary, it seems like The Sheep Detectives is very well worth your time and attention when it hits theaters on May 8.
