Pecore Sotto Copertura: Animated Sheep Solve Murder in Surprising Family Film

The animated family film 'Pecore Sotto Copertura' (Sheep Undercover) has surprised audiences and critics with its emotional depth and technical quality. Directed by Kyle Balda (Lorax, Minions) and written by Craig Mazin (Chernobyl, The Last of Us), the film is a murder mystery set in an English countryside town. After a shepherd is killed, his sheep—voiced by a star-studded cast including Hugh Jackman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Chris O'Dowd, Patrick Stewart, and Bella Ramsey—help the local police investigate. The plot follows classic whodunit archetypes, with the sheep applying detective stories read to them by their late owner. The film explores themes of grief, memory, and exclusion, as the flock initially chooses to forget traumatic events but is stopped by a lone ram. London-based studio Framestore, in collaboration with Clear Angle Studios, created expressive CGI sheep, each breed matched to a character's personality: Lily, the smart protagonist, is a Shetland sheep; Mopple, who remembers everything, is a Merino; Sebastian, the stoic leader, is an Icelandic Leadersheep; and Sir Richfield, voiced by Stewart, is a Boreray. The film avoids the uncanny valley effect and delivers emotional moments driven by the sheep alone. Released in Italian theaters on May 7, 2026, the film targets Millennial parents and Alpha/Beta generation children, offering a romanticized vision of rural slow living while addressing loss and belonging.