Disney’s Creation Oswald Is The Latest Public Domain Character To Get A Horror Spin-Off

For those still keen on watching classic cartoon stars who’ve hit the public domain maul and murder, a new project is in the works featuring Walt Disney’s first break-out character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

Following in the footsteps of films like Winnie-the-Pooh Blood and Honey, which scared up around $5 million in global box office, and several new Mickey Mouse-themed projects teased last month, Oswald: Down the Rabbit Hole will repurpose an iconic character for the horror genre.

The synopsis for Down the Rabbit Hole reads:

Art and some of his closest friends help track down his long-lost family lineage. When they find and explore his Great-Grandpa Oswald’s abandoned home, they encounter a magical tv that teleports them to a place lost in time, shrouded by dark Hollywood Magic. The group finds that they are not alone when they discover Oswald’s come-to-life cartoon Rabbit, a dark entity that decides their souls are it’s for the taking. Art and his friends must work together to escape their magical prison before the Rabbit gets to them first.

Down the Rabbit Hole was created by filmmaker Lilton Stewart III and is produced by Lady of the Light Productions’ Lucinda Bruce, who said they hope to begin shooting this spring.

It hasn’t been revealed yet how much animation will appear in the presumably hybrid film, but a press release did indicate that animated sequences will be produced by L.A.-based commercial studio Mana. Also attached to the project: post-production studio Tandem Post House and vfx veteran Bob Homami, who will serve as vfx supervisor.

Stewart and Bruce have a completed 142-page script and are in the process of casting for the project while also looking to finalize additional financial backing.

In a release, Stewart explained that although Down the Rabbit Hole is part of a larger trend of animation horror spin-offs, he hopes to offer something new to this emerging genre:

The teaser trailer will give people a taste of the gruesome and nightmarish journey that takes the characters from an exciting adventure of finding themselves to one they hope to make it out of alive. Creating a new type of horror film that has never been done before has always been a dream of mine. I think the audience will be surprised at the significant differences between Oswald and other films in the spin-off horror space.

Down the Rabbit Hole’s press release also included a poster for the film, seen below.