Look, let’s be real: no-one is going to see The Sheep Detectives and expecting to see the 2027 Best Picture winner. Ostensibly this feels like a Netflix film that somehow escaped containment and made it into a real cinema, complete with an impossibly stacked cast and slightly wonky visuals. But there is a certain charm to the proceedings, even if the final product is practically begging to unleash some more adult humour than its PG rating will allow. Not that that would usually stop a family film from going there: some of the best jokes in films like Shrek are ones explicitly designed to go over the kiddies’ heads. But whilst The Sheep Detectives has some touching lessons about life and death to impart, it doesn’t balance it with enough comedy to really justify the objective insanity of its premise.
Based on Leonie Swann’s novel Three Bags Full, the film follows a flock of sheep shepherded by their farmer George (Hugh Jackman), a grumpy old loner who is not well-liked in the village of Denbrook. Every night, George reads detective novels to his sheep, unaware that they understand every word he says. But when a murder is committed, the sheep must band together, led by intelligent ewe Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), alongside loner Sebastian (Bryan Cranston) and comic relief Mopple (Chris O’Dowd) to catch the killer. Yes, it’s an absurd premise, almost as weird as seeing Succession’s Nicholas Braun as a bumbling English policeman relying on the help of junior reporter Elliott (Nicholas Galitzine, who should stay blond forever) to solve the crime. And on top of that, Braun is legitimately the best part of the film and gets some of the best moments. Rounding out the human cast are rival shepherd Caleb (Tosin Cole), butcher Ham (Conleth Hill, and no, the names are not subtle), shady Reverend Hillcoate (Kobna Holdbrook-Smith), innkeeper Beth (Hong Chau) and George’s American daughter, Rebecca (Molly Gordon). Emma Thompson also has a fun cameo as George’s no-nonsense lawyer, rocking a purple power suit and serving business. As is typical in a murder mystery, everyone seemed to have a reason to want George dead and no-one has a good alibi for the night of the murder. Strangely there are a lot of visual similarities to Wake Up Dead Man, the most recent Knives Out film, from the verdant landscape to religious allusions, although admittedly Benoit Blanc is probably a slightly better detective than these sheep.
Apparently, screaming animals are STILL funny in 2026.
The film plays into all the expected tropes of British cozy crime: the pastoral Midsomer Murders-esque setting, quirky characters, and overridingly twee proceedings will seem familiar. The main USP comes from watching sheep solve a murder, which does bring about some humour, like watching the flock attempting to cross a road for the first time. But thankfully the film is better at creating pathos than laughter, and there is a genuinely touching rumination on life and death as the sheep discover that they don’t just float up into the sky and turn into clouds, and a lesson about the power of memory no matter how painful it can be. Still, I don’t know how much any of this will engage children, which begs the question: why bother making this a family film? I’m not saying I want The Sheep Detectives to feel like the next Tarantino film (although I would gladly pay to see it), but I think aiming to bump it up to a 12 certificate would’ve helped it feel less Postman Pat and more Poirot. I would be surprised if this does incredibly well at the box office, and tonally it seems muddled, particularly in the advertising. Do many children enjoy murder mysteries? Netflix may have bungled their adaptation, but The Thursday Murder Club has a similar vibe whilst being firmly for adults. I suppose doing “baby’s first murder mystery” isn’t a bad idea, but there’s not enough to keep the children – or adults – truly engaged. At a certain point you have to ask who the hell you’re making this for, and whether they’re actually going to give a damn about it.
Tell me: do you think they tried to make the sheep sexy? Is that sheep giving baa-edroom eyes?
The Sheep Detectives isn’t going to change your life, but I doubt you’ll be asking for your money back either. It’s the sort of film you chuck on randomly one Sunday afternoon when you find it on Netflix, except for some reason you can pay £15 to see it on the big screen instead. The cast is bursting with talent but it feels a little wasted, particularly Hong Chau whose character shows promise and then quickly fades into the background, and as much as I hate to say it I thought Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ voice performance lacked personality. There are better vocal offerings from Cranston, O’Dowd and Patrick Stewart, but ultimately it isn’t enough to elevate it beyond perfectly fine. Really it’s a shame though – the premise is so delightfully weird and fully committing to that would have probably lifted it quite a bit, but instead there is a tinge of blandness about the whole thing. Also, it was written by Craig Mazin, who might have one of the strangest screenwriting careers out there, and produced by Lord & Miller (of recent Project Hail Mary fame). Anyway, this film is not baa-d, but there wouldn’t be any real ram-ifications if ewe didn’t get out to the cinema and see it. I’m very sorry, I’ll see myself out.
Director: Kyle Balda
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, Molly Gordon
Runtime: 109m
Certificate: PG
Country: United Kingdom
Images: Working Title Films, three Strange Angels, Lord Miller Productions, Sony Pictures Releasing