I know for the rest of my life every time a beloved character enters the public domain someone will immediately turn them into a serial killer in a low-budget horror movie. Mickey Mouse didn’t even finish saying, “Oh boy, intellectual property laws!” before we got the trailer for his uninspired slasher flick. And yet, despite knowing the inevitability of these movies, I truly did not see the latest public domain film news coming. Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey‘s killer bear is teaming-up with other iconic characters in the free IP crossover horror movie Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble.
But Bambi, Peter Pan, and Pinocchio are getting their own standalone films first.
Variety first reported the burgeoning Blood and Honey cinematic universe already has its big event planned. Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble will see the murderous Winnie the Pooh partner Avengers-style with other famous free-to-use icons. He’s joining with Bambi, Tinkerbell, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, Tigger, Piglet, The Mad Hatter, and Sleeping Beauty. The group movie already has a poster, too. It shows Pooh swinging a bear trap atop a feral Bambi’s back.
If you’re concerned Jagged Edge Productions and ITN Studios are jumping the gun on a rushed crossover movie ala Batman v Superman DON’T WORRY! Some characters will get their own standalone horror movies first. They’re part of what is now being called the “Twisted Childhood Universe.” Those upcoming films include Bambi: The Reckoning, Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare, and Pinocchio Unstrung.
“It will be complete carnage,” said director Rhys Frake-Waterfield in a press release. “We are heavily influenced by Freddy Vs Jason and The Avengers. We would love to see a horror movie where the villains group together and are going after their survivors. We have some incredible set pieces in mind and some sequences I think will truly shock people. The movies we are working on now as standalones are all building towards Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble.”
Things won’t be entirely sweet as honey between the murderous beings, though. The movie will also see the creatures battling each other at various points. Cause why not at this point, right?
Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble will star Scott Chambers as Christopher Robin, Megan Plactio as Wendy Darling, Roxanne Mckee as Xana, and Lewis Santer as Tigger. More casting news will be shared later. The new slate of films will all arrive in 2025. This announcement comes right before Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 comes to theaters, which debuts on March 26.
You can thank/blame public domain laws for that anytime you like.
