“All animals are equal,” Animal Farm (2026) Trailer promises a hollow regurgitation of a literary masterpiece.

Written by T Canchola

If you’ve taken a high school English class, chances are that you read this acclaimed novel, Animal Farm by George Orwell. A cautionary tale that tells of the dangers that blind belief and propaganda present to a society. It was a life changing experience for some, and guess what? Andy Serkis is directing a film adaptation of it!

And in my completely honest opinion, it is going to be one of, if not the worst movie of the year. Here’s why.

Animal Farm, published in 1945, follows a group of farm animals who overthrow their abusive human owners, and vow to create a better society in which “all animals are equal.” The rebellion’s leader, Napoleon, unfortunately abuses his privileges as soon as he comes into power, his own greed causing the other animals to suffer and some even die at the hands of his cruelty, adding to the previous quote, “but some are more equal than others.” Eventually the animals cannot tell him apart from the very humans that they rebelled against. It’s an allegory for the Stalistic period of the Soviet Union, a guide to recognizing the totalitarian tendencies of leaders and how they control society through manipulation disguised as nurturing.

75th Anniversary Cover edition of Animal Farm.

And now we’re getting a silly kids movie, its message a weak echo of the original written work. The trailer showcases a much more lighthearted version of the story, as if it would still portray the same impactful moral, but I suspect that is not the case. The movie takes place in a modern day world, but with an advanced farm system that wants to take advantage of the animals, worlds different from the early twentieth century setting the book takes place in.

Napoleon (voiced by Seth Rogen) sporting his new clothes, while George Orwell rolls in his grave.

The trailer seems to completely disregard the fact that Napoleon plays the role of a cold and ruthless dictator in the novel, and rather portrays him as the quirky joking “villain,” shifting the blame to a stereotypical, sharp nose, money hungry human antagonist, the true meaning becoming watered down to so it’s more palatable. Because it sure would be a shame if we started to question our own leaders so harshly, now wouldn’t it? (Sarcasm, for those who can’t tell.)

The book is obviously being dumbed down in this adaptation for the sake of the viewers, so let’s take a look at the film’s target audience. That is, of course, children and their nostalgic guardians. The movie has an expressed PG rating, which is ironic considering that when it was originally published, it was advertised as a children's book (Good luck explaining to little Susie why you never hear about those four little piggies ever again). This means that droves of kids and their parents will be flooding the theatres, but it won’t be an insightful, modernized version of the tale that families witness. It will be approximately 96 minutes of various farm animals obnoxiously dancing to “Feel it Still" while poor Boxer gets sent to the "veterinarian.”

The movie releases May 1, 2026, so there are many months to dread leading up to its premiere. To anyone planning to see it, take the time to educate yourself on the story’s true message and form your own opinion before Squealer persuades you to waste your money on another film that capitalizes on classic novel degradation.