The Most Bonkers Thriller of 2025 Officially Lands on Free Streaming
The Twisted Childhood Universe has become an online sensation
A few years ago, something strange happened. Some of the world’s favorite kid-friendly characters, like Winnie the Pooh and Pinocchio, became the stars of low-budget horror movies. These films take the basics of the original stories and mash them with horror subgenres like slashers and abduction movies, resulting in a cinematic universe that's… unique. How is Disney allowing this, you may ask? Well, the films are adaptations of the original books, which have entered the public domain over the past decades. In 2025, that same group of filmmakers gave another beloved Disney creature the horror treatment, this time, with an environmental twist.
Directed by Dan Allen, Bambi: The Reckoning is based on the 1923 Felix Salten novel and is part of the Twisted Childhood Universe (aka the Poohniverse), made up of films like Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey and Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare. What initially appeared to be a joke (or a craven money-making scheme) has evolved into a sturdy franchise that horror fans should consider, especially now that Bambi: The Reckoning is streaming for free on Tubi. Here's why you should watch it now and get a taste of the premise that has captured the interest of millions of people.
Despite having no connection to the Disney cartoon, The Reckoning starts with a familiar, animated vignette of deer in the woods. Like a fairy tale, the story begins with a deer and its offspring enjoying their idyllic life. Then comes a hunter. It’s a clear reference to Bambi’s most famous scene, the death of his mother, which is far more horrifying than this film ever could be, no matter how many body parts end up flying around the screen.
The Reckoning is set in the present day, and, like Bambi, it's a story that begins with a mother and son. This time around, instead of animals experiencing the ever-present threat of humanity, the conceit is reversed. Xana (Roxanne McKee) and her son Benji (Tom Mulheron) are hunted by a version of Bambi you’ve never seen before: massive, with red eyes, an imposing cluster of antlers, and a maw filled with rotting fangs. Instead of growing into the prince of the forest and forming friendships with the woods’ adorable creatures, Bambi is alone and vicious, seeking revenge on all humans. His monstrous side is also directly related to the pollution of his home.
Our human protagonists fall into Bambi's orbit while traveling to spend a weekend with Benji's absent dad and grandmother (Nicola Wright), who’s struggling with dementia and paints landscapes of the forest and scary portraits of antlers. It doesn't take long for the actual monster she's been alluding to show up, and the group spends most of the film on the run, with Bambi toppling over cars and breaking into their home in relentless pursuit. Allen sets up some gnarly kills and one very creative sequence featuring a group of bunnies, a clear reference to Thumper, Disney Bambi's best friend. It’s the film’s best callback and inversion of the original.
As the story continues, the family collides with some local hunters, who’ve been wreaking havoc on the forest as they hunt for Bambi. It's here that Allen vocalizes the film's environmental storyline and places the blame directly on humans, drawing inspiration from the source material itself. While the original novel is a coming of age, it’s also one of the first environmental stories, with Salten describing the forest’s lush surroundings in detail while highlighting the destructive influence of humans on nature. Bambi: The Reckoning doesn’t approach the topic with as much tact, it's not that kind of film (in one scene Bambi tears a woman in half with its antlers), but it’s nice that the filmmakers tried.
Bambi: The Reckoning won't convert anyone who isn't already curious about its concept. If a quality monster movie is what you're after, you're better off with other films. But if you're trying to understand the phenomenon of the Twisted Childhood Universe while also getting a few gory laughs in, this modern and cynical take on Bambi is a good place to start.
Bambi: The Reckoning is streaming on Tubi.