Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey director has received death threats from outraged fans
The director of Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey has received death threats after turning the beloved bear into a murderous monster for a new horror.
The director of the new Winnie the Pooh horror movie has received death threats from disgruntled fans of the teddy bear family.
AA Milne’s Winnie the Pooh tales are a children’s classic known the world over, inspiring movies like Christopher Robin, but now Jagged Edge Productions has put a dark spin on the lovable characters.
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey is a horror retelling of the story in which Pooh and Piglet go on a murderous rampage.
The lovable characters turned bloodthirsty killers terrorize a group of college students and a grown Christopher Robin when he returns to the Hundred Acre Wood five years after leaving for college.
The film’s director, Rhys Frake-Waterfield, revealed that there has been backlash to the project, telling the AFP news agency: “Look, this is crazy, I’ve had calls to stop it.” I have received death threats. I’ve had people say they called the police.
Outrage: The director of the new Winnie the Pooh horror movie has received death threats from disgruntled fans of the teddy bear family.
Reimagining: Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey is a horror retelling of the story in which Pooh and Piglet go on a murderous rampage.
The film opened in Mexico on January 26 and will be released in the UK on March 10.
Originally slated for a nationwide one night event, the film will now receive a wide theatrical release in response to fan demand.
That’s good news for the movie’s earnings, which was made on a budget of less than $100,000.
Rhys added: ‘He really believed in the idea. Other people didn’t… and now all is well.’
The film is now only possible because the rights to the Winnie the Pooh stories entered the public domain in January 2022.
This means that anyone who wants to use characters or concepts from everyone’s favorite yellow bear now doesn’t have to ask for permission or pay copyright fees.
Shortly after Mr. Milne’s death in 1956, his widow sold the rights to Winnie the Pooh to Stephen Slesinger, who then sold them to the Walt Disney Company.
The rights had been split between Milne’s widow and three other organizations, who sold their rights to Disney in 2001.
Director Rhys Frake-Waterfield said: ‘I have received death threats. I’ve had people say they called the police’ (pictured at the premiere in Mexico City)
Retelling: The film is only now possible because the rights to the Winnie the Pooh stories entered the public domain in January 2022
Although the rights to the original Winnie the Pooh characters have now expired, Disney still holds the copyright to their own version of the bear, as well as all movies and images associated with them.
The film will star Craig David Dowsett as the honey-loving bear and Chris Cordell as Piglet.
Characters introduced in the books later, such as Tigger, will not appear in Blood and Honey because their copyrights have not yet expired.