Forgotten World. That’s what I keep calling this movie. It’s not. It’s Forgotten Island (2026). Even when I get the name right, people don’t know what I’m talking about when I tell them about the big-budget, major-studio movie that I loved.
Blame DreamWorks’ marketing team. The trailers sell a dainty fairy-filled fantasy with a Back to the Future memory-erasing plot and a Filipino twist on Poochie from The Simpsons. The trailer lies. It doesn’t show the creative visual storytelling, dark humor, or legit scares that make Forgotten Island one of the most fun family films of 2026.
It’s about two young Filipino girls who rely on each other to survive their difficult childhoods. They bond over stories from older generations, including forgotten Filipino myths about Nakalimutan, a mysterious island that calls to people when they need it. One of the girls grows into a joyful lunatic, like her grandmother who inspired them. The other is grounded by a fear of failure, which makes her friend’s willingness to charge headfirst through life a blessing and a curse.
Years later, life starts to push them in different directions when they’re swept into the mythical Nakalimutan. But when they wake up, they’ve suddenly lost a day. They don’t remember a thing about last night. The creatures who live there sure do, including Manananggal, a demon whose body-breaking, shifty movements look like she crawled from a J-horror flick. She’s genuinely terrifying. Disney villains, hang your sharp-cheek-boned and robustly jowled heads in shame.
Forgotten Island keeps finding new ways to surprise you. A dog introduced in the ads like he’s supposed to be a cute mascot (Poochie) turns out to be a devious but hilarious lunatic who surprisingly grows on you. The movie hums along, constantly shifting pace and style to compound story beats or put an exclamation point on a joke, similar to The Mitchells vs. The Machines and KPop Demon Hunters. Except more so. Wait, let me try that again…EXCEPT MORE SO!!! The artists might be hopped up on fermented Flaming Cheetos dust because nothing on screen is stagnant. At any moment a cloud of color can burst, spewing out comic book-style onomatopoeias or animated emojis, all while paired with a pop music breakbeat.
Underneath all that creativity is a friendship that’s a bit messy at times. One of the girls becomes so desperate to keep them geographically together that she sabotages her friend. But in the end, she learns that supporting a friend sometimes means letting her go do her thing, even if it’s far away. In this case, her thing means studying astrophysics in California. Once you understand why the girl is afraid of being alone, you sympathize.
Skip the trailer. Ignore the marketing. Mix up a weng weng (basically a classy tropical Long Island Iced Tea) and have fun getting lost in Forgotten World. I mean Island. Dammit, marketing team — how’d you screw up this easy win?
Where to watch
Rating: PG (8+)
Directors: Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado
Starring: H.E.R., Liza Soberano, Dave Franco, Jenny Slate, Manny Jacinto, Dolly de Leon, Jo Koy, Ronny Chieng, and Lea Salonga
Run time: 1h 49m
Post-credits scenes: Nope. Though the credits do include childhood photos of the cast and crew, which is surprisingly light on Filipinos.
Sequel? Because of the ad wizards behind this one, it’s unlikely Forgotten Island will earn its money back. DreamWorks has not announced any plans either.
If you liked Forgotten Island, check out these films:
- The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021)
- KPop Demon Hunters (2025)
- Nimona (2023)
- Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)
- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
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Find this title on the Family Film Recommendations list
