Bambiis the next animated Disney movie to get rebooted, as an all-new version of the 1942 classic is officially in the works. The project has already found its writers as well, as Disney has signed on Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel) and Lindsey Beer (Sierra Burgess Is a Loser,Chaos Walking) to pen the screenplay. Chris Weitz, Paul Weitz, and Andrew Miano are also producing under their Depth of Field production banner.
TheBambiremake is said to be similar toDisney’s remakes of The Jungle Book and The Lion King. While those movies consist of CGI animation, the hyper-realistic design of the animals gives them that live-action look. This goes with the company’s trend of remaking many of their animated classics by way of live-action reboots, which has also included other beloved titles likeBeauty and the Beast,Cinderella,Lady and the Tramp, andAladdin. New live-action remakes ofPinocchio,The Little Mermaid, andPeter Panare also in the works, and chances are, we’ll soon be hearing about even more on the way as well.
Based on a novel by Felix Salten,Bambiwas first released in 1942. It is just thefifth animated Disney movie, and yet, for nearly eight decades, the classic movie remains one of the most memorable of them all. At the time, the movie received three Academy Award nominations, and has since been added to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. These days, you’ll still often see it near the top of online lists ranking Disney’s best animated movies. Given the success of Disney’s other live-action remakes and the past and continued popularity ofBambi, it’s needless to say that this news of the classic movie getting the remake treatment isn’t terribly surprising.
Bambitells the story of a young fawn finding his way in the forest with his woodland pals, which includesThumper the rabbit, Flower the skunk, and Faline the fawn. At the risk of revealing a 78-year-old spoiler, one of the movie’s most iconic scenes comes in the beginning when Bambi’s mother is tragically killed by a hunter, which to this day remains one of cinema’s saddest moments in history. Even Walt Disney’s daughter, Diane, criticized the decision to have Bambi’s mother killed, and Paul McCartney has cited the fictional doe’s death for sparking his interest in animal rights. It appears that much like with Mufasa inThe Lion King, Disney is looking to break the hearts of an entire generation of children once again.
There’s no word yet on when we can expect to see theBambiremake release, and it remains to be seen whether the project is intended to premiere in theaters or if it will be exclusive toDisney+. As the originalBambiwas later given a sequel, there’s always a chance the live-action remake will as well, as the newAladdinalready has one of its own in the works. In any case, don’t expect to see Disney’s remake trend slowing down anytime soon. This news comes to us fromThe Hollywood Reporter.
