Laika is six years removed from its last theatrical release, and the new trailer for Wildwood makes clear the studio has spent that time building something large. The film opens October 23 from Fathom Entertainment, and multiple outlets are already calling it the studio's most ambitious project to date.
According to Variety, Laika chief marketing and operations officer David Burke put some numbers to that ambition. "It means that we've got 136 locations in the feature, and many of them are so large that the crew can walk through them," Burke said. "There's 231 practical puppets, 54 hero characters, and each and every one of them has been engineered and costumed like a bespoke work of art."
The film is adapted from the 2011 children's fantasy novel written by Colin Meloy, frontman of the band The Decemberists, and illustrated by his wife, Carson Ellis. Meloy also contributed a song to the film. The story follows 12-year-old Prue McKeel, voiced by Peyton Elizabeth Lee, whose baby brother is kidnapped by a murder of crows. She and her classmate Curtis, voiced by Jacob Tremblay, travel into a forbidden forest outside Portland, Oregon, to bring him back. There they encounter talking animals, bandits, and powerful figures as the enchanted world edges toward war.
IndieWire reported that the trailer is set to a cover of "Wake Me Up" by Avicii, and teases the backstory of the film's villain, Alexandra, voiced by Carey Mulligan. Alexandra is a grieving mother who lost her own son and is now pursuing vengeance against the forest's inhabitants, while also capturing Curtis and attempting to corrupt him for her own purposes. In the trailer, Prue says, "I promised I'd take care of him," as scenes of action and danger unfold around her.
Travis Knight directs from a screenplay by Chris Butler, his longtime creative partner. The two previously collaborated on Kubo and the Two Strings in 2016, which earned two Oscar nominations, including best animated feature. Knight also directed this year's live-action Masters of the Universe. Laika's last feature, 2019's Missing Link, won the Golden Globe for best animated feature. Before that, Coraline, ParaNorman, and The Boxtrolls each received best animated feature nominations at the Academy Awards.
The voice cast extends well beyond Lee and Tremblay. Mahershala Ali, Angela Bassett, Awkwafina, Amandla Stenberg, Charlie Day, Tom Waits, Richard E. Grant, Jake Johnson, Jemaine Clement, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, and Rob Delaney are all part of the ensemble. Bassett voices a character called the General, described by The Wrap as a giant golden eagle. Legendary cinematographer Caleb Deschanel, known for The Right Stuff and The Natural, shot the film, and composer Dario Marianelli wrote the score.
Variety's chief awards editor Clayton Davis has already placed Wildwood in his best picture predictions for the 2027 Academy Awards. The film also notably marks one of Fathom Entertainment's first non-event theatrical releases, a departure from the company's usual model of limited-run screenings.
Laika's Portland roots connect directly to the story. The forbidden forest Prue enters sits just outside of Portland, matching the studio's own home base in Oregon. The studio has owned the rights to the Wildwood novel since 2011, making the film a 15-year journey from acquisition to screen. Also in development at Laika are an adult animated film called The Night Gardener, written by Ozark co-creator Bill Dubuque, and an adaptation of Susanna Clarke's Piranesi, both set to be directed by Knight. Wildwood arrives in theaters October 23.
