Animated titles including Animal Farm and a Chicken Run re-release dominate recent releases in UK and Ireland cinemas this weekend as major studi
Animated titles including Animal Farm and a Chicken Run re-release dominate recent releases in UK and Ireland cinemas this weekend as major studios look to steer clear of The Odyssey.
Miracle Comms and Dazzler launch Chickenhare And The Secret Of The Groundhog into 286 cinemas. The animated sequel follows Chickenhare and friends on a time‑bending quest to save their clan. The 2022 original Chickenhare And The Hamster Of Darkness launched on Netflix.
Park Circus is re-releasing Chicken Run in 236 cinemas, 26 years after its original launch. The film made £29.3m, making it the highest-grossing stop-motion animation of all time.
Andy Serkis returns to directing with Animal Farm: A Cautionary Tale, opening in 232 venues for Vue Lumiere. Premiering at Annecy in 2025, the animated comedy offers a loose, contemporary spin on Orwell’s novella, following a adolescent piglet, Lucky, as he challenges Napoleon’s tightening grip on Manor Farm. Featuring voice work from Seth Rogen, Steve Buscemi, Kieran Culkin, Gaten Matarazzo, and Kathleen Turner.
Trafalgar Releasing brings Sia: Nostalgic for the Present to 78 venues, marking the 10th anniversary of the pop star’s 2016 Coachella performance. Directed by Sia and Daniel Askill, the event release blends live music, dance, and film for a one‑off theatrical experience.
Picturehouse Entertainment releases Giuseppe Tornatore’s Brunello Cucinelli in 39 sites, tracing the designer’s journey from rural Umbria to global luxury entrepreneurship.
Altitude rolls out Pinocchio: Unstrung across 39 locations. Directed by Rhys Frake‑Waterfield, the horror title continues the Twisted Childhood Universe trend, following the success of Winnie‑the‑Pooh: Blood and Honey.
Zee Studios opens The India Story in 27 venues. Starring Kajal Aggarwal and Shreyas Talpade, the film examines farming practices, chemical misuse, and their social consequences in rural India.
Helen Walsh’s On The Sea arrives at 21 sites via Verve Pictures following festival screenings at Edinburgh, BFI Flare, and Palm Springs. Starring Barry Ward and Lorne MacFadyen, the UK drama centres on a North Wales mussel fisherman whose tranquil life is unsettled by the arrival of a drifter, prompting long‑buried desires to resurface.
Curzon brings a recent 4K restoration of Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1983 drama Nostalghia, opening on 17 screens. The film follows a Russian poet and his interpreter who travel to Italy to research the life of an 18th-century composer.
Following a sturdy opening weekend, Universal’s The Odyssey is expected to remain a dominant presence at the box office.
