DreamWorks’ Forgotten Island Opens With 100% Rotten Tomatoes Score

DreamWorks Animation’s 50th animated feature, Forgotten Island, has earned a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes ahead of its U.S. theatrical release on September 25, 2026. The film, led by Liza Soberano and Grammy and Academy Award-winning singer H.E.R., brings together an unusually large concentration of Filipino and Filipino-American talent for a major Hollywood animated production.

Directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, Forgotten Island marks another collaboration between the filmmakers following their work on 2022’s Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. For Crawford, the project is his third DreamWorks feature after The Croods: A New Age.

Set in the Philippines during the 1990s, the story centers on longtime friends Jo and Raissa, voiced by H.E.R. and Soberano. With high school graduation approaching and their friendship facing a new chapter, the pair enter the mythical island of Nakali through a magical portal on their final night together. The island is inhabited by shapeshifters, witches, demons and other creatures from Philippine mythology, but staying there comes with a dangerous consequence: their memories of the outside world and eventually each other begin to disappear.

Lea Salonga voices Manang, a character inspired by the Manananggal, a creature in Philippine folklore traditionally described as having the ability to separate its upper body from its lower half and fly at night. The film’s additional voice cast includes Dave Franco, Jenny Slate, Manny Jacinto, Dolly de Leon, Jo Koy, Ronny Chieng and Amielynn Abellera.

Early critical reactions have been strongly positive. The Hollywood Reporter praised the movie’s animation as “dazzling and tremendously fast-paced,” noting influences that range from anime and Studio Ghibli to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Refinery29 described the film as “joyful, hilarious and will bring many people to tears,” while IGN highlighted its exploration of friendship and the importance of the shared memories created between people.

Forgotten Island also received a strong response during its work-in-progress screening at the 2026 Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June. Its perfect Rotten Tomatoes score ahead of the theatrical release has added to the attention surrounding DreamWorks’ latest animated feature.

Music is another major part of the film’s Filipino cultural representation. The soundtrack includes performances from H.E.R., Lea Salonga, Filipino boy band SB19, girl group BINI, the late Francis Magalona, rapper Ruby Ibarra and Carl Angelo.

KATSEYE member Sophia Laforteza also contributes a cover of INXS’ “Never Tear Us Apart” to the soundtrack and makes a voice cameo in the movie. Laforteza is currently on hiatus from KATSEYE for personal health and wellness reasons, and the song has been charting in the Philippines ahead of the film’s release. Her connection to the project also follows KATSEYE’s “Monster High” video, in which she portrayed a Manananggal inspired by the same Filipino folklore tradition behind Salonga’s character.

BINI and SB19, both among the Philippines’ most-streamed musical acts internationally, further broaden the soundtrack’s generational reach. BINI also made its Coachella debut earlier in 2026, adding another major international milestone to the group’s profile.

Forgotten Island will open in U.S. cinemas on September 25, 2026, with special preview screenings scheduled for the evening of September 24.