Ryan Reynolds-Led Animal Friends Release Date Delayed to 2026

The release date for the live-action hybrid road trip adventure Animal Friends, featuring Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds and Lobo actor Jason Momoa, has been delayed for several months. A Legendary, Maximum Effort, and Prime Focus Studios production, it was originally slated to come out through Sony Pictures but later shifted to Warner Bros. as part of the deal the company made with Legendary.

Ryan Reynolds and Jason Momoa’s Animal Friends gets new release date

Animal Friends will now release in US theaters on May 1, 2026, nearly seven months after its previously announced premiere date, October 10, 2025. Besides Reynolds and Momoa, the cast of Animal Friends includes Aubrey Plaza, Addison Rae, Dan Levy, Lil Rel Howery, and Ellie Bamber. Peter Atencio directed the feature from a script by Kevin Burrows and Matt Mider.

This is not the first time that Animal Friends has suffered a delay in its release. Sony Pictures initially set its release date for August 15, 2025. However, Warner Bros. then acquired the distribution rights for the movie and changed it to October 10.

According to Deadline, Animal Friends was described as “an R-rated road trip adventure” when it was announced in April 2023. Production reportedly began in June 2023 and concluded in April 2024.

Notably, Maximum Effort is a production company that Reynolds co-founded. Some of the projects they have produced include Deadpool 2 (2018), Free Guy (2021), Shotgun Wedding (2022), and Deadpool & Wolverine (2024).

DNEG, noted for their work on Nimona (2023) and Dune: Part Two (2024), is handling the animation and visual effects on Animal Friends.

Peter Atencio previously directed action comedy movies Keanu (2016) and The Machine (2023). Burrows and Mider were the creators of the GQ original animated series Gentlemen Lobsters. They were also the co-writers of the 2018 teen comedy The Package.