With the original iterations of several Disney characters now in the public domain, the door has been opened to parodies featuring twisted new versions of them (despite that, rival studios are still very limited with what they can do and the smallest misstep could lead to a huge lawsuit).
One of the most attention-grabbing parodies is the upcoming horror movie Screamboat which, in case it wasn’t obvious, is based on the iconic Mickey Mouse predecessor, Steamboat Willie.
Directed by Steven LaMorte, who previously helmed 2022’s The Mean Onea horror based on Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmasthe teaser trailer suggests the project will make slasher fans happy.
According to the synopsis, “[Screamboat] follows a group of New Yorkers on a late-night ferry ride that turns deadly when a mischievous mouse begins a rampage, targeting unsuspecting passengers. The unlikely crew must band together to thwart the murderous menace before their relaxing commute turns into a nightmare.”
You can watch the newly released trailer below (via FearHQ.com) ahead of the movie’s planned 2025 release.
Screamboat isn’t the only horror parody on the way, of course, as Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey‘s “Poohniverse” looks set to expand with several new public domain characters.
Bambi: The Reckoning, Pinocchio: Unstrungand Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare are all on the way and we now have a first look at the latter.
Scott Jeffrey directs Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare and the Jagged Edge Productions film follows Wendy Darling as she strikes out in an attempt to rescue her brother Michael from “the clutches of the evil Peter Pan.” Apparently, she’ll also reunite with Tinkerbell, who in this twisted tale will be show taking heroin, convinced that it’s pixie dust.
Talking about the movie, Jeffrey said, “This is tonally an extremely darker film to Winnie-The-Pooh: Blood and Honey. When dealing with children being abducted, it felt right. All of the films from our Poohniverse will feel different from the last.”
“So, if one isn’t for you, then maybe the next will be. Peter Pan is the most vicious of them all. He is twisted, cruel and cunning.”
The cast is led by Megan Placito as Wendy Darling, Peter Desouza-Feighoney as Michael Darling (The Pope’s Exorcist), Kit Green as Tinkerbell, Martin Portlock (Wolf Manor) as Peter Pan, Nicholas Woodeson (Heavy rain), Kierston Wareing (Fish Tank), Olumir Olorunfemi (Venom: Let There Be Carnage), Teresa Banham, Charity Kase and Campbell Wallace.
Check out the Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare trailer below (also via FearHQ.com). For the time being, its release date is just “Coming Soon.”