'The Sheep Detectives' Review: A Murder Mystery That is One of This Years Biggest Cinema Surprises
- 14 minutes ago
- 3 min read
By Alex Gilston - May 12, 2026
What do a flock of CGI sheep, a rogues cast of famous stars, and Craig Mazin, the writer of Chernobyl and The Last of Us TV show, have in common? They’ve all come together in The Sheep Detectives, a cozy comedy, murder mystery where yes, you guessed it, the titular sheep detectives are the main characters. Intrigue, wit, and emotion collide in one of this years biggest surprise cinema hits.
On paper you’d presume that The Sheep Detectives, written by Craig Mazin, was some sort of tax write off. After all, what seemed to be a CGI hodgepodge, filled with some big A-List stars, written by the creator of one of this century’s most harrowing TV shows was an odd sale. This writer even admits to (jokingly) wondering what dirt Craig Mazin had on half of the voice cast signed up to this film. That being said, there is truly nothing better than when a film not only proves you wrong, but exceeds expectations ten-fold.
The Sheep Detectives follows George Hardy (Hugh Jackman) and his over-a-dozen strong sheep herd in the village of Denbrook. He looks after them, keeps them fed, sheared, and is attentive to their wellbeing. For good measure he even reads them murder mystery books before bed. He laments the fact that the sheep cannot respond to him, but unbeknownst to him they can speak and communicate with each other. The endless nights of book clubs come in handy when George is murdered in the middle of the night. The most inquisitive sheep of the herd Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) must enlist the help of Mopple (Chris O’Dowd), Sebastian (Bryan Cranston), and the rest of the flock (including, but not limited to, Brett Goldstein, Bella Ramsay, and Regina Hall) to solve their shepherd’s murder.
The Sheep Detectives does not reinvent the wheel but instead uses a tried and tested formula to its advantage. There are constant reminders throughout about the rules of a murder mystery, a recipe that they all follow to their conclusion à la Scream (1996). There’s a worry that in emphasising these tropes it might make the narrative seem tired, however there’s just enough divergence from it to keep things exciting. Plus it cleverly plays into the fact that they’re sheep who are naive to the world and are discovering its complicated nature as they journey through.
Beyond its murder mystery leanings The Sheep Detectives is thematically rich and in turn incredibly emotional. It explores the nature of life and death, belonging and found family, and memory especially when the events are difficult and messy. This part seems lifted directly from modern society where we would rather shut out all the noise and pretend it isn’t happening than stand up and try to campaign for change. No matter what though, you will go on a rollercoaster where one minute you’ll be laughing and the next crying into your popcorn.
In a never ending sea of negativity that the industry is facing right now, it’s nice to see that a film like The Sheep Detectives seems to have really cut through and gone down well over such a universal audience. It’s a madcap caper filled with heart and laughter, and it might well be one of the best of the year so far.
'The Sheep Detectives' is out now in cinemas.
Want more film reviews? Dive into more reviews, rankings, and film conversations on our site. Explore Film Focus Online now!
