Top 10 Best Animated Movies in Theaters 2022 - Latest Update

The Bob's Burgers Movie is a 2022 American animated film based on the animated series Bob's Burgers. Directed by series creator Loren Bouchard and series director Bernard Derriman, the film is written by Bouchard and Nora Smith.

Set between the 12th and 13th seasons of Bob's Burgers, the storyline follows Bob and his family as they struggle to repay a loan after a sinkhole opens in front of their restaurant, affecting their business. Meanwhile, the kids try to solve a carnival murder case. The film premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood on May 17, 2022, and was theatrically released by 20th Century Studios in the United States on May 27, 2022, after multiple delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It received positive reviews from critics and grossed $34 million worldwide. The film is dedicated to character designer Dave Creek and background artist Denise Fuller, both of whom died before its release. A perfect extension of the Bob's Burgers TV show, The Bob's Burgers Movie revives the demand for family-friendly adult animation on the big screen. The Bob's Burgers Movie holds an 89% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, a 7.4 rating on IMDb, and has garnered praise from both critics and long-time fans of the show.

Without a doubt, the film deserves acclaim for its visuals, entertainment value, and the seamless blend of the show's pacing and storytelling into a delightful and fantastic family film.

Sea Monsters is a 2022 computer-animated adventure film directed by Chris Williams, co-written by Williams and Nell Benjamin, and produced with Jed Schlanger. The film features the voice talents of Karl Urban, Zaris-Angel Hator, Jared Harris, and Marianne Jean-Baptiste.

The story follows a sea monster hunter and a young orphan girl who joins his crew to search for the elusive Red Bluster, after a previous failure leads the hunter and the girl to befriend the creature. The film began limited theatrical release on June 24, 2022, before streaming on Netflix on July 8. It has received positive reviews from critics. For centuries, sea monsters have risen to wreak havoc on humanity. In response, daring sailors venture out on their ships to hunt these creatures on the open ocean, most notably among them is the crew of the Inevitable, led by the legendary Captain Crow, the first mate Sarah Sharpe, and the adoptive son Jacob Holland. This is accepted by the king and queen. Continuing the story of a young girl stowing away on a sea monster hunter's ship, Sea Monsters is a thrilling new animated adventure from Netflix that quickly makes waves with audiences.

With perfect visuals and an entertaining fantasy plot, Sea Monsters is an excellent addition to both Netflix's original animation and family-friendly comedy with fantastic characters.

Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood is a 2022 American animated film set against the events leading up to the Apollo 11 moon landing, based on the childhood of writer, director, and producer Richard Linklater. The film presents a fictionalized story of a fourth-grade student who becomes the first to land on the moon and stars Glen Powell, Jack Black, Zachary Levi, and Josh Wiggins.

Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood premiered at South by Southwest on March 13, 2022, and was released in select theaters on March 24, 2022, before streaming on Netflix on April 1. The film received positive reviews, praised for its writing, visuals, and nostalgic feel. The first moon landing in the summer of 1969 is recounted from two intertwined perspectives. It captures both the astronauts' and mission controllers' views of the triumphant moment. The view from below, less seen, is from the excited eyes of a child living near NASA but mostly watching on TV like hundreds of millions of others. Ultimately, it's both an accurate recreation of this pivotal moment in history and a child's imaginative take on being plucked from their normal suburban life to secretly train for a moon mission.

As a genuinely remarkable and truthful tale, capturing both real historical events and American life in the 1960s, the film also stands out as a beautiful work on its own through animation, the first feature-length animated film made through rotoscope in years. Without a doubt, Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood is poised to debut with both the cast and crew deserving the highest praise.

Minions: The Rise of Gru is a 2022 American animated comedy film produced by Illumination and distributed by Universal Pictures. It is a sequel to the prequel spin-off Minions (2015) and is the fifth installment overall in the Despicable Me film series.

The film is directed by Kyle Balda, co-directed by Brad Ableson and Jonathan del Val, produced by Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy, and Chris Renaud, and written by Matthew Fogel with a story by Brian Lynch and Fogel. The movie features Steve Carell as Gru and Pierre Coffin as the Minions. In the film, 11-year-old Gru plans to become a superhero with the help of the Minions, leading to a confrontation with a villainous group, the Vicious 6. After a two-year delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Minions: The Rise of Gru premiered at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival on June 13, 2022, and was released in the United States on July 1, 2022, by Universal Pictures. The film has been praised as an improvement over its predecessor, with accolades for its musical numbers, family-friendly entertainment value, humor, and aesthetics, despite criticism of its plot.

Minions: The Rise of Gru is a box office success, grossing over $925 million worldwide and becoming the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2022 and the highest-grossing animated film of the year. The film is dedicated to the memory of animation filmmaker Madeline Montero, who passed away during the film's production.

Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe is a 2022 American adult animated science fiction comedy film directed by John Rice and Albert Calleros and written by Mike Judge, Lew Morton, Guy Maxtone-Graham, and Ian Maxtone-Graham. It is the second film based on the Beavis and Butt-Head television series following Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996).

The film follows the teenage troublemakers Beavis and Butt-Head, who are transported from 1998 to 2022, encountering parallel versions of themselves and being hunted by the U.S. government. The film was announced in February 2021. The production process was conducted remotely via Zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic. John Frizzell, the composer of Do America, returned to score the film. The movie was released on the Paramount+ streaming service on June 23, 2022, ahead of positive reviews from critics. In Highland, Texas, in 1998, Beavis and Butt-Head accidentally set fire to their high school science fair. Believing they are risk-taking teens, a judge sends them to space camp at the Johnson Space Center, where they become enamored with a mock-up assembly. Impressed, NASA astronaut Captain Serena Ryan invites them to train as astronauts. They undergo training and board the Endeavour space shuttle to study a super-small black hole. As a follow-up to the 1993 Beavis and Butt-Head TV series, this Paramount+ exclusive film has received positive reviews and serves as an exciting kickoff for the recently revived entire franchise.

Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe is a time and space-traveling adventure, testing beloved characters from the 90s against the modern conveniences of the 2020s. While the initial program met expectations for many, it has made a noteworthy impression on the audience, currently standing with an IMDb rating of 7.1.

Detective Conan: Halloween Bride is a mysterious Japanese animated film from 2022 directed by Susumu Mitsunaka. It is the 25th installment in the Case Closed series based on the manga of the same name by Gosho Aoyama, following the 2021 release. The film was premiered in Japan on April 15, 2022.

Former MPD director Tsutomu Muranaka, preparing to marry fiancée Christine Richard, receives a death threat. With police protection, attempting to fend off any threats during the wedding ceremony, the next day, while visiting the MPD headquarters, Kogoro, Ran, Conan, and the Detective Boys coincidentally encounter a man holding an explosive tablet. Kogoro is injured trying to shield Haibara. Conan later meets Rei and learns that the explosion may be related to a bombing attempt that Rei and his colleagues Morofushi, Matsuda, and Date thwarted many years ago. The mysterious Japanese animation, Detective Conan: Halloween Bride, marks the latest addition to the Case Closed film and television series, all based on the nearly 30-year-old manga series, also known as Closed Case.

Detective Conan: Halloween Bride premiered in Japan in April and has received generally positive reviews, currently standing with a 7.0 rating on IMDb. It debuted at number one at the box office in its first week, following the success of the rest of the series as demonstrated in previous years.

Turning to Red is a fantasy animated comedy film from 2022 produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film is directed by Domee Shi in her directorial debut, and the screenplay is co-written by Shi and Julia Cho, produced by Lindsey Collins.

Set in Toronto, Ontario in 2002, the film follows Meilin Mei Lee, a 13-year-old Canadian student of Chinese descent who, due to a genetic curse, transforms into a giant red panda when she experiences intense emotions. Inspired by Shi's own experiences growing up in Toronto, the film began development in 2018 after she pitched it to Pixar in October 2017. It is Pixar's first film directed solely by a woman. Special screenings of Turning to Red took place in London at Everyman Borough Yards on February 21, 2022, and in Toronto at TIFF Bell Lightbox on March 8. The film premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on March 1 and was released on the Disney+ streaming service and in select theaters on March 11.

Turning to Red has made a significant impact, daring to push boundaries that most films of a similar nature have yet to cross, and praised for its accurate and nostalgic portrayal of 13-year-olds in the early 2000s.

The Villains is a 2022 American animated heist film based on the children's book series of the same name by Aaron Blabey, produced by DreamWorks Animation Studios and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film is directed by Pierre Perifel, with a screenplay by Etan Cohen.

The story revolves around a group of anthropomorphic animal criminals who, when caught, pretend to try to reform themselves into model citizens, only for their leader to find himself truly drawn to embracing his new villainous persona with a plan. Production on the film began in 2018, with characters and themes inspired by various crime films and animated series such as Ocean's Eleven, Lupin III, Pulp Fiction, and Beastars, while the animation style is influenced by Sony Pictures Animation's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). The production process began at DWA Glendale, with additional production support from Jellyfish Pictures, and voice acting done remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Villains was released in several countries starting from March 16, 2022, and in the United States on April 22, in 2D and RealD 3D formats. The film received overall positive reviews from critics for its animation, writing, humor, and voice acting.

The Villains grossed $247.1 million worldwide, becoming the second-highest-grossing animated film of 2022. The film showcased a completely new animation style for the studio and was highly praised.

Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Team is a live-action animated adventure comedy film in the United States based on the characters Chip and Dale. It is a sequel to the animated television series of the same name. Directed by Akiva Schaffer and written by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand.

The film is set in a world where fictional characters from cartoons, movies, and other media live alongside humans, focusing on Chip and Dale, thirty years since their show was canceled due to decline, returning to reconcile their differences. While investigating the kidnapping of Chip 'n Dale's friend and Monterey Jack. Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Team premiered in Hollywood on May 16, 2022, and was released in the United States on May 20, 2022, streaming on Disney as an original film. The film received generally positive reviews from critics for its humor, voice acting, and meta-commentary. At the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, the film won the Outstanding Animated Program award. The film, featuring Andy Samberg as the 3D Dale and John Mulaney as his traditionally animated companion, Chip, has garnered significant love from both old and new fans.

Despite being partly live-action, the blend of various animation styles ultimately made the film captivating, earning it a 7.0 rating on IMDb.

The Abode is an adult stop-motion animation anthology film from the United Kingdom in 2022, written by Enda Walsh. It tells distinct stories forming a trilogy with different worlds and characters but set within the same abode.

Each story touches on themes of obsession, insanity, wealth, and the pursuit of true happiness. Initially announced as a television miniseries, it evolved into a compilation film. Produced for Netflix by Nexus Studios in London, the film narrates three stories sequentially, with directors credited for their respective segments, and Johannes Nyholm co-writing the second part. The Abode is told in three separate parts across three different eras. It's undoubtedly a unique story that seems to have resonated deeply with its audience, immersed in a sense of nostalgia for the haunted stop-motion abode as well as those unsettled by underutilized animation mediums.

Not to be confused with the 2017 live-action film of the same name starring Will Ferrell, The Abode is a recent addition to Netflix's treasure trove of stop-motion animation. The film spans genres, offering humor, horror, appealing to both adult and younger audiences, serving as a reminder that stop-motion animation is a timeless filmmaking art form.