The adorable fawn from Disney's canon is no more. Now he's transformed into a mutated and monstrous beast on a roaring rampage of revenge.
In the latest movie from the minds behind Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, Bambi has become a terrifyingly feral creature with no problem brutally killing people in part of his quest for vengeance after his mother is killed. Variety shared the first trailer for Bambi: The Reckoning on Wednesday. You can watch the video embedded above.
The story of Bambi didn't actually originate in the 1942 Disney film, instead coming from the Austrian novel Bambi, a Life in the Woods by Felix Salten, which is in the public domain. Bambi: The Reckoning is one of many recently released public domain horror titles. It is also part of the Twisted Childhood Universe (TCU) created by Rhys Frake-Waterfield and Scott Chambers.
The TCU started with Blood and Honey, its sequel, and Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare. A Pinocchio movie is also expected to release later this year along with the team-up film Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. Additional movies are in the works about Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Mary Poppins, and Alice in Wonderland.
Even though the Disney film is obviously geared toward families and children, that's obviously not the case for Bambi: The Reckoning. Just one look at the trailer and you'll see it's full of bloodshed and violence, with Bambi using his antlers in all kinds of terrifying ways—to gore his victims, flips cars, and more. No one is safe from this buck's rage.
From Jagged Edge Productions and ITN Studios, Bambi: The Reckoning is on track for a summer 2025 release, although no date has been specified just yet.
Dan Allen directed the Bambi fearfest based on a script by Rhys Warrington. The film stars Roxanne McKee, Nicola Wright, Tom Mulheron, Samira Mighty, Joseph Greenwood, Alex Cooke, Catherine Adams, and Russell Geoffrey Banks.
It's not just the TCU that is warping our beloved childhood favorites. Other public domain characters like Popeye the Sailor Man and Mickey Mouse from the Disney short Steamboat Willie are also getting the horror treatment. Terrifier star David Howard Thornton stars in the upcoming mutant mouse horror movie Screamboat, releasing in April, and Popeye is a real killer in Popeye the Slayer Man, releasing on March 21. It seems there is no shortage of characters for these daring filmmakers to pervert into nightmare material.