The filmmaker behind Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, Rhys Frake-Waterfield, has promised that the horror reimagining of the beloved childhood characters will be “big,” “epic,” and push things even further than the recent brutal horror cult hit, Terrifier 2. For horror and gore fans, it is no doubt exactly what they wanted to hear.
“The main franchises I was thinking of while making this were Halloween, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Wrong Turn. I really like Wrong Turn. It’s not as big as the other ones, but the first one is on my little list of horror movies that I love. And as we’re going into the sequel soon, Terrifier 2 is going to be one of my key reference points. I want to make sure I go as big and epic as they went with that. I want to try and push it even more.”
Speaking with SFX Magazine, the director namedrops Terrifier 2 as inspiration and classics such as Halloween and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, meaning that Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey suddenly has a lot to live up to.
Released last year, Terrifier 2 once again follows the violent exploits of Art the Clown, picking up after his resurrection and following his pursuit of a girl and her younger brother on Halloween night. Met with a positive response from both critics and audiences alike, Terrifier 2 revels in blood and gore, with one particular murder sequence reportedly causing moviegoers to faint and vomit.
Can Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey achieve the same level of horror and disgust?
Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey Will Now Receive an Expanded Theatrical Release Next Month
A twisted retelling of the A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard's Winnie-the-Pooh books, Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey finds the likes of Pooh and Piglet as you hoped to never see them. On a slasher rampage and covered in blood. Or, considering the popularity surrounding the project, perhaps this is how you always wanted to see them...
As every child knows, Christopher Robin befriended Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, and their friends, playing games and providing them with food. What we all don’t know, however, is that as he grew, these visits became more infrequent, as did the food supply, causing Pooh and the others to grow increasingly hungry and desperate.
When Christopher went off to college, his visits to the Hundred Acre Wood stopped completely, causing Pooh and Piglet to become completely feral and unhinged. Which sadly resulted in Eeyore getting killed and eaten at some point. Now, Christopher Robin has returned to the forest alongside his new wife, hoping to introduce her to his old friends. Unfortunately for them, Pooh and Piglet will not forgive that easily, with the pair going on a murderous rampage for human flesh as they antagonize a group of university girls occupying a rural cabin.
Directed and written by Rhys Frake-Waterfield, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey stars Nikolai Leon as Christopher Robin alongside Amber Doig-Thorne, Maria Taylor, Danielle Ronald, Natasha Tosini, May Kelly, Paula Coiz, Natasha Rose Mills as Jess, and Craig David Dowsett and Chris Cordell as Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet respectively.
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey will now receive an expanded theatrical release courtesy of Fathom Events, Altitude Film Distribution, Cineplex Entertainment, and Cinemex, and will screen from Feb. 15, 2023, to Feb. 23, 2023.