In order to avoid copyright issues, Frake-Waterfield was careful to avoid Pooh's red shirt, and any other elements from Disney's depictions that could pose a copyright issue.
Jagged Edge Productions produced the film in collaboration with ITN Studios, who distributed it. Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, which was shot in England, was filmed over a period of ten days. He also revealed that, prior to the events of the film, Pooh and Piglet ate Eeyore alive due to their hunger Eeyore's tombstone will be shown in one scene. They're no longer tame: they're like a vicious bear and pig who want to go around and try and find prey. So they've gone back to their animal roots. Because they've had to fend for themselves so much, they've essentially become feral. He stated:Ĭhristopher Robin is pulled away from them, and he's not them food, it's made Pooh and Piglet's life quite difficult. Speaking to Variety, Frake-Waterfield described the plot as both Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet turn into homicidal maniacs after Christopher Robin left them for college.
After the copyright lapsed, Rhys Frake-Waterfield began production on Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey the same year, with the film marking his directorial debut. The characters' rights had been owned by The Walt Disney Company since 1966 and, while Disney retains exclusive rights to the depictions of these characters from their 1977 film The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, as well as later characters such as Tigger, Winnie-the-Pooh went into the public domain in January 2022. On May 24, 2022, Josh Korngut of Dread Central reported the announcement of a Winnie-the-Pooh-based horror film adaptation. While the drawings from the 1926 book went into the public domain along with its text, Frake-Waterfield had to avoid any elements that were unique to Disney's depictions of the character. Feeling betrayed, this results in them going on a murderous rampage for human flesh as they antagonize a group of university girls who are occupying a rural cabin. Now, Christopher has returned to the forest alongside his new wife, hoping to introduce her to his old friends. When Christopher went to college, the visits stopped completely, causing Pooh and Piglet to become completely feral and unhinged, resulting in Eeyore and the others getting killed and eaten at some point. As he grew, these visits grew more infrequent, as did the food supply, causing Pooh and the others to grow increasingly hungry and desperate. The film is produced by Jagged Edge Productions and distributed by ITN Studios and MovieCompany (The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Dutch Antilles).ĭuring his childhood, Christopher Robin befriended Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, and their friends, playing games and also providing them with food. Upon its announcement, the film was met with mixed reactions and drew widespread attention due to its concept involving a character that had garnered a reputation for being a "beloved childhood icon".
Development for the film began when the original book became a public domain work in the United States in January 2022, resulting in The Walt Disney Company no longer holding exclusive film rights to the characters first depicted in the book. Milne's 1926 book Winnie-the-Pooh, and follows the anthropomorphic characters Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet as they become bloodthirsty murderers when Christopher Robin abandons them for college. The film serves as a horror retelling of A. Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey is an upcoming independent slasher film directed and written by Rhys Frake-Waterfield.