Entertainment

Wicker: Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård’s Fairytale Romance Is a Critics’ Hit

today15th November 2026

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Wicker, the fairytale romance starring Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård as a man made of woven reeds, is in UK cinemas now – and critics love it.

Wicker: the essentials
Stars
Olivia Colman, Alexander Skarsgård
Directors
Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson
Based on
Ursula Wills’ short story The Wicker Husband
UK release
30 October 2026
Rotten Tomatoes
94% from 196 critics
Premiere
Sundance Film Festival, January 2026

What is Wicker about?

Colman plays a lonely fisherwoman who pays a basket weaver to make her a husband out of wicker. Skarsgård is the Wicker Husband, and his arrival changes her life – until the suspicious villagers turn against them.

Without giving too much away, the story takes in a wicker child, a fire and a painful separation before reaching its ending.

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Skarsgård stepped in for Dev Patel

Dev Patel was originally attached to the role before Skarsgård took over. The Swedish actor, known for Succession, Big Little Lies and The Northman, has been talking about the film in interviews this month, praising its “social commentary” for not being too preachy.

What do critics say?

Wicker has 94% on Rotten Tomatoes from 196 reviews, with an average score of 7.6 out of 10, and 70 out of 100 on Metacritic. It is released in the UK by Black Bear Pictures.

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Sources: Black Bear Pictures, Sundance Institute, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic.

Written by: Energy Radio Newsroom