In The Sheep Detectives (read our review here), a delightfully offbeat mystery led by Hugh Jackman’s well-meaning shepherd George, it’s not just the sheep quietly observing – it’s also the humans scrambling to keep up. Enter Tim Derry, the endearingly outmatched small-town cop played by Nicholas Braun, who might be more afraid of his own taser than the case he’s supposed to solve. But beneath the awkwardness and comic misfires lies something far more relatable: a man desperate to prove he belongs.
Braun leans into that emotional core, grounding Tim’s journey in insecurity and quiet determination rather than broad caricature. It’s a performance that makes you laugh, sure – but more importantly, it makes you root for him. As the mystery unfolds and the sheep begin to out-detect their human counterparts, Tim finds himself on a parallel path of growth, inching toward the kind of confidence he’s always lacked.
When our Peter Gray spoke with Braun ahead of the film’s release, their conversation quickly veered into unexpected territory – from defending The Wizard of Oz over its far stranger sequel Return to Oz, to unpacking how he approached Tim not as a joke, but as someone wrestling with self-worth in a town that’s already written him off.
I’m going to get this out of the way first and say I feel incredibly vindicated owning a copy of Return to Oz after seeing this film.
Wow. Yeah, I had to watch it so I knew what (my character) was talking about. It’s pretty rough, right?
Yeah! Well, I love the idea that in this film Return to Oz is better than The Wizard of Oz. That’s the kind of hill that Tim might die on. I wanted to ask, where do you land on that debate? And what’s your own wildly unpopular film opinion that you’ll defend no matter what?
Ooh, well I definitely land on Wizard of Oz being much, much better than Return to Oz. Return to Oz…wow, it feels like, I mean, something crazy. They made that movie (with) all the guys rollerblading around. There’s just…I don’t know, it’s like, why do we need to see these guys rollerblading so much? What was the second part of your question?
A wildly unpopular film opinion that you’ll defend, no matter what…
Yeah, what’s one? Name some. Maybe I’ll get inspired. What are ones that are controversial?
Showgirls. Batman & Robin. Basic Instinct 2. Sharknado…
Oh, uh huh, I see where you’re going. Um. Shit. I don’t have anything good.
Well, I know the director compared your performance to a modern day Peter Sellers, which is obviously a great thing to hear. Did you lean into any classic comedy influences? Or was your instinct to ground everything as much as possible?
Yeah, I mean, honestly, I haven’t seen any Peter Sellers movies. But, thank you, Kyle (Balda) for saying that. What a compliment. But I do know that Peter Sellers is revered and a great actor, and I think the writing in this movie did so much, like Craig (Mazin, screenwriter) really makes it clear who this character is, what this character is, what’s the point of this character, what’s their journey in the film. I like to approach every part dramatically and what’s the human dilemma they are dealing with? What are they trying to overcome? Find the actual stakes on a human level. How does Tim feel like he can matter more in this town? How can he get people to believe in him and think he’s capable? All those things which are rooted in that lack of self-esteem and lack of ego. That loneliness of feeling like you’re not enough.
So everything that he does that’s sort of funny, I would have that in my head to make sure it does stay an important thing. I didn’t draw from anything specifically. I just had good writing in front of me and a great story, and I just tried to do it justice. I felt like when I read (this script) there was so much potential in this movie, and especially with Tim. Tim being this sort of winter lamb of the village, if you will. I don’t know, I just wanted to make it meaningful. I knew it was going to be funny. I knew the sheep were going to look great. I was witnessing Emma (Thompson) and all these actors doing such a great job. Yeah, when I read it I knew this could be really special. I don’t think any of us were messing around and just trying to make it funny and silly. There was something really underneath the movie that would set it apart.
It absolutely works, because you’re all playing it very sincere. That’s what makes it so much more believable and so much more entertaining. I don’t think this will be an unpopular opinion that people will love this movie. Thank you so much for taking the time out. This film was such a joy to watch.
Yeah, I’m glad you feel that, man, thank you for watching. It was nice to meet you.
The Sheep Detectives is screening in Australian theatres from May 7th, 2026, before opening in the United States on May 8th.
