During an interview with Collider’s Maggie Lovitt, Knight also discussed what those increasingly ambitious movies demand of him as a director. Each production gives him experience he can bring to the next, though that doesn’t mean approaching a new story gets any less intimidating. His upcoming projects will give him plenty of opportunities to put those lessons to work. Knight told Lovitt that LAIKA has several projects in development, with plans to explore genres the studio hasn’t tackled before. There will be a wait before audiences get to see those movies, of course, due to the nature of LAIKA's animation. Asked what comes next after Wildwood, he said:
“We got a lot of wonderful projects that we're developing with some great creative people. I'm very excited about the stories that we have yet to come. It does take us a while at LAIKA to make these movies. So there's not one right around the corner. But we have stories that are unlike anything that we've ever done before that we're developing. We have stories that take the medium of animation into places that it's never gone before, stories that challenge us in different ways. And I'm excited that we're playing around in some genres that we've never explored before.”
Knight didn’t name those unexplored genres, but he did temper expectations about how soon another movie might arrive. “Unfortunately, because these things in stop motion take time, you're gonna have to wait a little longer than I'd hope,” he said. “But I think we've got a lot of wonderful stories yet to come.”
Two projects Knight could discuss were The Night Gardener and Piranesi, both of which LAIKA has previously announced. The former comes from Ozark co-creator Bill Dubuque, while the latter adapts Susanna Clarke’s novel. When Lovitt asked about the projects he might direct next, Knight said:
“There are a couple of projects that I'm developing at LAIKA that we have actually announced. These are things I can talk about. One of them is The Night Gardener, which is a beautiful kind of neo-noir thriller, written by the great Bill Dubuque. It's a story unlike anything we've ever seen in animation.”
Knight also singled out Clarke as one of his favorite authors when discussing Piranesi, and anyone familiar with the nature of the novel knows the adaptation presents a challenge. Fortunately, Knight sounded pleased to accept it. “One of the interesting things is it's been called an unfilmable book,” he said, adding, “And I will take that challenge.”
Wildwood is now playing in theaters. Stay tuned at Collider for more.
Release Date
October 23, 2026
Runtime
132 Minutes
Director
Travis Knight
Cast
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Peyton Elizabeth Lee
Prue McKeel (voice)
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Carey Mulligan
Alexandra (voice)
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Image via LAIKA Studios
English (US) ·