Work on Shaun the Sheep Movie 2 will start in January, says Bristol-based animation producer

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

A sequel to the hit animated film Shaun the Sheep Movie has been announced.

Bristol-based producer Aardman Animations said that work on Shaun the Sheep Movie 2 would begin in January 2017, with Richard Starzak back on board as director (though Mark Burton, who co-directed the first film, will not return).

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David Sproxton, co-founder and executive chairman of Aardman, maker of the Wallace and Gromit films, said in a statement: “The flock are very excited to be embarking on another big screen adventure – a rip-roaring comedy that takes them to even greater heights of lunacy.”

Shaun originated as a character in Nick Park’s 1995 Oscar-winning short A Close Shave, and then became the central figure in a highly successful TV series, Shaun the Sheep, which debuted on the CBBC channel in 2007. Shaun the Sheep Movie was released in 2015 and has taken more than $106m worldwide.