Inside Laika’s Wildwood: New Poster Teases Magic and Wonder

A single image can promise an entire world. Laika’s freshly released poster for Wildwood does just that—inviting audiences into a knotty, shadowed forest where wonder and danger walk side by side.

The studio behind Coraline and ParaNorman returns to stop-motion with a bold adaptation of Colin Meloy’s 2011 children’s novel, brought to life by illustrator Carson Ellis’s distinctive designs. This feels like Laika at its most ambitious: handcrafted textures, meticulous puppetry, and a sense that every twig and feather has its own backstory.

Travis Knight, whose previous work includes Kubo and the Two Strings and the recent Masters of the Universe, directs from a script by Chris Butler, the writer of ParaNorman and Masters of the Universe. Their collaboration promises a film that blends dark fairy-tale elements with emotional stakes—an adventure built as much on feeling as on spectacle.

The plot centers on Prue McKeel, a stubborn teen who plunges beyond the edge of Portland, Oregon, into an enchanted stretch of wilderness after a gang of crows kidnaps her baby brother. She doesn’t go alone. Curtis Mehlberg, an unlucky but loyal classmate, becomes her reluctant partner through a landscape populated by talking animals, rogues, and powerful figures shaped by grief and ambition.

It’s a classic rescue quest with twists: friendship tested, alliances forged, and a fragile ecosystem’s balance tipping toward chaos. Will Prue find the courage she didn’t know she had? Will Wildwood be saved? The poster hints at both peril and possibility—twilight tones, looming trees, and a solitary figure that feels both small and defiantly resolved.

The voice cast reads like a who’s who of contemporary talent: Carey Mulligan, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Richard E. Grant, Awkwafina, Amandla Stenberg, Tom Waits, Charlie Day, Blythe Danner, Arthur Knight, Maya Erskine, Jake Johnson, Tantoo Cardinal, Rob Delaney, Jemaine Clement, Mark Evan Jackson, Len Cariou, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Angela Bassett, and Mahershala Ali. Big names, yes—but chosen to serve atmosphere and character rather than spectacle.

Wildwood opens in theaters on October 23, 2026.

Laika’s new poster doesn’t reveal every secret. It offers mood and invitation instead—an appetizer for curious viewers, collectors of tactile animation, and anyone who still believes a puppet can break your heart. Keep an eye out for trailers and festival appearances; if the poster is any indication, Wildwood wants to be experienced on the big screen.