The first full-length trailer for indie horror movie Bambi: The Reckoning has arrived, giving fans a detailed look at the mutated, rampaging deer. You can watch it above.
The twisted new take on Felix Salten’s 1923 novel Bambi, a Life in the Woods – which was famously adapted in the Disney classic Bambi – comes from Jagged Edge Productions.
The company, which has been capitalising on the expired IP of classic children’s stories, was also responsible for the 2023 slasher Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, its 2024 sequel, Blood and Honey 2, and this year’s Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare.
The official synopsis for Bambi: The Reckoning reads: “After a mother and son get in a car wreck, they soon become hunted by Bambi, a mutated grief-stricken deer on a deadly rampage seeking revenge for the death of his mother.”
In the two-minute trailer, we see Bambi in full rampage mode as he flips cars and violently kills various characters. The clip has been met with a mixed response on social media, with some horror fans revelling at the idea of a killer Bambi.
Fuck yea! Cannot wait! My wife and I love these! We own both of the Winnie the Pooh ones and Mousetrap! The Twisted Childhood Universe is like getting true versions of all the Grimm brothers stuff before Disney sanitized and romanticized them all. Just waiting for the Peter Pan…
— Martles Movies, Reviews & Satire (@Martles3) March 5, 2025
Lmao let’s gooooo
— MIKE LOWERY (@slim_charles00) March 5, 2025
“I can’t wait,” commented one person. “After seeing how different Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare was from Blood and Honey, I’m really excited to see the direction Bambi goes in. Absolutely hooked on these movies.”
Another wrote: “Arm the animals against the hunters! YES!”
Others, meanwhile, are less enthusiastic about the continued horrification of expired IP, with one person writing: “The obsession with taking beloved characters into horror movies is a little annoying, tbh. Just make a decent horror movie without the gimmick.”
“Does anyone actually like these movies?” added another.
we really living in the timeline where bambi is horror now. what’s next, cinderella slasher?
— Capt. Luffy (@CaptLuffy__) March 5, 2025
Does anyone actually like these movies?
— Neal☆Pretty Boy☆Thomas (@TheRKPodcast) March 5, 2025
This twisted version of Bambi is the latest addition to the Poohniverse film franchise, which will see the deer team up with Winnie the Pooh, Tinker Bell, Pinocchio and more for an “Avengers-style” horror movie, titled Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble.
Other characters expected to join the franchise include Sleeping Beauty, The Mad Hatter, and additional figures from Winnie the Pooh.