Picture Credit: Netflix
Netflix has revealed that Allen, the new live-action family film from Ludo Studio, the Emmy and BAFTA-winning Australian studio behind Bluey, will land globally on Netflix on Thursday, November 12th, 2026. Alongside the date, Netflix released a short but very funny teaser that’s sure to catch a few people out.
Here’s everything you need to know about Allen a month before its release, noting that you can find our previous coverage of the movie here and Netflix’s upcoming Aussie and Kiwi slate here.
What is Allen about?
Allen is an Australian sci-fi family comedy about a man who never quite got over his childhood alien encounter. Netflix’s official logline reads:
20 years after his encounter with an alien, Petey never moved on. Now his old friend has returned, and the reason why is complicated — and unexpected.
Think E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, but picking up two decades later, when the kid has grown up and his extraterrestrial best friend comes crash-landing back into his life.
Creator and co-director Daley Pearson said of the project when it entered production:
Allen is really a story about love, family and all those big and small moments from childhood that end up shaping who we are when we grow up. Getting the opportunity to make this story in this part of the world – in the town where I grew up in, inspired by the friends and family I grew up with – is a dream. We’re creating Allen for families to watch together.
Netflix’s VP of Content for APAC, Minyoung Kim, added that Ludo Studio are “among Australia’s most exceptional storytellers” and that the streamer is “delighted to create a film that the entire family can enjoy.”
Watch the teaser for Allen
Netflix’s 26-second teaser for Allen is a brilliant bait-and-switch.
It opens with a slow, ominous pan over Earth from space, with fragmented glowing lines gradually assembling into a title. If you’re getting flashbacks to Ridley Scott’s 1979 classic Alien, that’s entirely the point, as the letters look set to spell out A L I E N before shuffling into the far more mundane A L L E N.
From there, a pulsing purple spacecraft descends onto a misty field at night. Petey watches on as the door slides open to reveal a gangly silhouette, before a robotic voice announces: “Allen came back!” Petey’s response? A wide-eyed scream that’s somewhere between pure joy and total panic.
It’s certainly an interesting way to introduce the film, and judging by the comments, more than a few people clicked expecting a new Alien project before realizing what they’d stumbled into.
Who is cast in Allen?
T.J. Power (Offspring) leads the cast as the grown-up Petey. He’s joined by:
- Charlotte Nicdao (Mythic Quest, Thou Shalt Not Steal) as Carly
- Josh Helman (Mad Max: Fury Road, X-Men: Days of Future Past) as Jaden
- Emily Barclay
- Benedict Hardie as Rory
- Kaipo Heke as Nahuel
- Chaydon Jay as Roy
- Danny Kim as Jim
- Caitlin Niemotko as Young Carly
- Edward A O’Sullivan as Young Petey
- Chistopher Sommers as Deputy Officer Gary Foots
Who’s behind Allen?
Allen (which was originally announced under a working title that has now stuck) is created by Daley Pearson, who co-directs alongside Jeffrey Walker (Apple Cider Vinegar, The Artful Dodger). Pearson co-wrote the script with Sophie Miller (Thou Shalt Not Steal).
Pearson and Charlie Aspinwall serve as executive producers for Ludo Studio, alongside Miller. Sam Moor (Ludo Studio) and Ross Allsop produce, with Lauren Brown co-producing.
The film marks Ludo Studio’s first locally made live-action feature, and comes off the back of the studio’s previous Netflix collaboration, Thou Shalt Not Steal.
Picture Credit: Netflix
When and where was Allen filmed?
Cameras started rolling in July 2025, with principal photography taking place across Brisbane and the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, including at Screen Queensland Studios. The film is set in a Queensland coastal town, inspired by the area where Pearson grew up.
The production was supported by the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland’s Production Attraction Strategy and its Post, Digital and Visual Effects (PDV) Incentive.
Will you be checking out Allen when it lands on Netflix on November 12th? Let us know in the comments.