Twisted Childhood Universe: Peter Pan, Snow White, and 5 more disturbing childhood tales in development

Back in 2022, it was exciting to learn that timeless childhood stories such as Winnie-the-Pooh would become part of the public domain. Since then, independent filmmakers have seized this opportunity to reimagine these cherished tales into terrifying nightmares. The trend started with Rhys Frake-Waterfield’s 2023 movie Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, which was followed by the release of Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 this year

However, the grisly Winnie-the-Pooh-inspired slasher movies are merely the surface level of what’s known as the “Twisted Childhood Universe” (TCU), a concept dreamt up by Frake-Waterfield and produced through his studio, Jagged Edge Productions. Despite the film Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey receiving widespread criticism, it managed to earn money at the box office and garnered enough interest to warrant a sequel. Interestingly, this follow-up was somewhat more favorably reviewed compared to the original

All of the Twisted Childhood Universe movies currently in development

The title “Sleeping Beauty” is a term often used in English literature to denote a scene or tableau in which a group of characters are depicted as if they were sleeping, or as if asleep, or as though they were sleeping, etc., in the style of Sleeping Beauty

Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare (2025) – A terrifying retelling of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan in which Wendy Darling must find her brother Michael after he was abducted by Peter and Tinkerbell. This one is written and directed by Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey star Scott Jeffrey, who played Christopher Robin in the slasher films.
Bambi: The Reckoning (2025) – This one takes on Felix Salten’s Bambi, A Life in the Woods and sees Bambi taking revenge for his mother’s death.
Pinnochio: Unstrung (2025) – Less is known about this one, but it will reportedly be a retelling of The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi.
Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble (2025) – As you can likely guess from the title, Poohniverse is an Avengers-style team-up where characters from other installments, likely Bambi, Pinnochio, and Peter Pan, will work together to take down survivors of their individual massacres. It will also supposedly introduce some other popular public domain characters.
Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 3 (2026) – The third entry into the main series.

Additionally, the software for “Awakening Sleeping Beauty” and “Snow White Returns” is also said to be undergoing development

The TV Channel Universe (TCU) has numerous films in development, and it’s surprising that all of them will materialize. However, unbelievable things have already occurred. If they manage to captivate a dedicated audience, even a devoted fanbase, the TCU could persist for many years to come

Besides the TCU, there are a couple of horror movies in production that revolve around Steamboat Willie, the 1928 short film that debuted Mickey Mouse. One of these films, titled “The Mouse Trap,” was already released this year, and another one, “Screamboat,” featuring David Howard Thornton (the Terrifier film series), is set to premiere in January 2025

The production company is currently developing a slasher film that resembles the style of Freddy vs. Jason, but instead of using Steamboat Willie and Mickey Mouse, it seems to be utilizing Winnie-the-Pooh in its creation. However, it doesn’t appear to be linked to the TCU or Screamboat

2024-09-05 23:30