Five classic cartoons that need to be adapted into horror movies
With Hollywood often hitting walls when it comes to developing exciting new film concepts, reinventing what we already know is a jackpot is a lucrative business. As evident in more recent films such as Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, The Mean One and a Cujo Bambi hybrid, classic cartoons reimagined as horror films have become the latest craze.
Horror fans are eager to see director Rhys Frake-Waterfield’s gory vision of the loveable Winnie the Pooh, who will be accompanied by Piglet in a murderous rampage after being abandoned by Christopher Robin. Speaking to HuffPost about what the horror film will show, Wakefield shared: “Pooh and Piglet experienced a drastic drop in food as Christopher [Robin] grew up, so over the years [they] became increasingly hungry and feral. Upon seeing Christopher, Pooh and Piglet go on a rampage and eventually target a rural cabin, where a group of girls from university are staying.”
Twisted takes on beloved and innocent stories always make for a creative concept. The terrifying ideas filmmakers can add to the original works amaze audiences and creep them out in equal measure. To see our childhood favourites, who once brought so much joy and comfort, being reimagined as horrific monsters or cold-blooded threats is something we can’t tear our eyes from.
These distortions can be applied to any cartoon classic from any era, take a treasured Disney animation and sprinkle in a bit of darkness and some carnage, and you have a grizzly twist on something that was once sweet. With the hundred-acre woods gang becoming vicious killers and Bambi turning rabid and bloodthirsty, there are no boundaries to these horror takes on cartoons.
With this change in mind, here are five freaky horror versions of classic cartoons we want to see hit theatres in the future.
Five cartoons destined for horror adaptations:
Cinderella Takes Revenge
Disney’s Cinderella is the studio’s 12th animated feature film, released in 1950. Based on the Grimms Brothers’ fairy tale of the same name, the film follows the poor and mistreated Cinderella who is forced to cook and clean as a slave for her cruel stepmother and stepsisters. After a fairy godmother gifts her a beautiful dress and a pair of glass slippers, Cinderella heads to Prince Charming’s ball to change her fate.
Disney’s version of this tale is a timeless classic recognised as one of the sweetest animations ever made. However, a darker version of the story would tap into the bitter rage of Cinderella following years of abuse at the hands of her evil family members, especially if they murdered her beloved father. Building from this, what if she exhibited some of that female rage audiences are obsessed with right now and carried out a plan of vengeance? Instead of marrying a handsome prince and being whisked away to his castle as a way of escaping her abusive family, maybe Cinderella gets rid of them herself and anyone else who mistreats her in a blood bath that leads to a Carrie-style ball. Perhaps the fairy godmother is a manifestation of Cindy’s rage and assists her in her revenge?
Peter Pan is a ghostly child abductor
Disney’s 14th animated feature is based on J.M Barrie’s original book Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Couldn’t Grow Up. In the film, a mischievous Peter Pan flies into the Darling children’s bedroom to whisk them off to the magical world of Neverland, where they meet the Lost Boys, swim with mermaids, and fight pirates.
A horror version of this classic would have a fair bit to work with as the original story holds some dark elements, such as Peter killing the Lost Boys if they tried to leave Neverland. There’s also the disturbing fact that Barrie came up with the story to cope with the loss of his brother during childhood, who was killed in an ice skating accident. Their grief-stricken mother neglected Barrie and mourned her son, causing Barrie to dress up as his sibling in a bid to please her. Soon after, his mother found bittersweet comfort in the fact her boy would now never grow up. A darker version of the cartoon could see Peter as a vengeful ghost who resents never being able to grow up, making sure other children see the same fate by manipulating them to join him in Neverland.
Alice in Horrorland
Alice in Wonderland was released in 1951 and told the charming story of an imaginative Alice who follows a white rabbit down a hole to the whimsical world of Wonderland. This colourful animation features talking flowers, an unorthodox Cheshire cat and merry tea parties.
Darker versions of Lewis Carroll’s original novel have been made before, such as a video game called Alice: Madness Returns and Tim Burton’s gothic and mature version. However, a pure horror take on Alice in Wonderland could replace the wonder with terror, with Alice being terrorised by unsettling creatures. The Mad Hatter’s tea party could borrow from Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s terrifying dinner sequence, with Alice being held as a guest against her will. The Queen of Hearts also orders heads to be chopped off left, right and centre, which doesn’t need much reworking to fit the new horror image.
Scooby Doo: Se7en or Saw style
Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Incorporated gang first burst onto TV screens in 1969 and have held a special place in our hearts ever since. There have been countless adaptations of the original cartoon, from live-action films to updated animated shows, backstories, and spin-offs. Audiences can’t get enough of these hippie teens solving mysteries and undoing ghoulish monsters.
Despite involving monsters and mysteries, the original cartoon was never cited as much of a horror or thriller, just your average children’s cartoon. However, what if the mystery machine drove straight into a Saw-style series of traps, ones that echo elements of Se7en’s use of the seven deadly sins? Imagine the gang having to solve a mystery of ongoing murders conducted by an unnamed serial killer who maintains a twisted sense of justice.
Beauty and the Wild Beast
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 Disney animation about the enchanting love story between a beautiful book smart towns girl and a cursed prince. The prince, who has lived as a monstrous beast after being cursed by a witch, holds Belle in his castle of talking furniture in place of her father. However, Belle soon sees the beast for who he truly is and the two fall in love.
The concept of a curse that turns men into beasts echoes the Universal classic wolf-man horror films, so this would be an exciting premise for a horror version of the fairy tale classic. The beast could be a feared creature living in the woods near a town, with the inhabitants fearing it. Belle could become a target, stalked by the beast who tears the townsfolk to pieces and is eventually kidnapped by the creature.
