Overview
- The film opened in wide release on Friday, October 23, 2026, and early reviews praise its craftsmanship while reporting high aggregator scores.
- Reporting describes an unusually large practical build with roughly 130 practical sets, more than 200 unique puppets and a reported 142,000 3D‑printed facial plates used for expression swaps.
- Laika combined traditional frame‑by‑frame puppet animation with targeted CGI and effects work from Wētā FX to smooth motion and create complex digital environments.
- Critics note a darker, more violent tone that earned a PG‑13 rating in some markets and say the long runtime compressed the novel’s scope in places.
- Director Travis Knight publicly rejected generative AI as unacceptable for Laika’s work, and industry coverage highlights a reported roughly $100 million cost and a shift to a nontraditional distributor that leaves box‑office performance as the key test for the studio’s financial viability.