The Twisted Childhood Universe (TCU) continues to expand with ‘Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare,’ a horror-filled reimagining of the classic Peter Pan story.
In an interview with ScreenRant, Scott Chambers shared details about the film and how it connects to the larger TCU. Chambers, who also produced the ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’ films and starred as Christopher Robin, explained that the TCU aims to make each movie feel different.
“Look, every entry to this universe is going to feel different to the last,” he said. “I compare it to The Conjuring universe in a different way. In ‘The Conjuring,’ you kind of know what you’re signing up to. Every time you watch one of those films, they’ve got the same tone, the same vibe, all that sort of thing. Whereas in ours, it’s not like that. If you don’t like one of them, you may actually like the next one.”
‘Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey’ leaned into campy horror, but ‘Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare’ takes a more serious and disturbing approach. As Chambers says, this variation is intentional to allow viewers to find something new in each film — even if one entry isn’t to their taste.
Still, the TCU isn’t just about standalone horror stories. Chambers revealed that Easter eggs and character connections are scattered throughout the films to preparing fans for the upcoming crossover event, ‘Poohniverse: Monsters Assembled.’
In ‘Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare,’ for example, Christopher Robin’s therapist from the ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’ films appears as Michael and Wendy’s mother. She’s wearing the same outfit to tie the stories together. Another connection involves a side character mentioning plans to go glamping. This directly links to her fate in the ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’ storyline.
Chambers also talked about the filming process and the larger plans for the TCU. “We literally five days ago finished filming ‘Pinocchio,’ and that has cameos from people within these films,” he announced. “That film is set, I think four months in the future from Peter Pan and Winnie, which I’ve done at the same time. But you do see people, and it’s all building to the Poohniverse. … I need you to feel a certain way about these characters because when we get to Poohniverse, I don’t have much time to kind of get to the action, and I need you to feel a certain way because I need there to be the bads and the bigger bads, and I need you to feel certain ways about them.”
Scott Chambers’ ‘Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare‘ has a darker take on Neverland. Peter Pan and Tinker Bell abduct children to bring them to their mysterious world. Wendy Darling takes center stage as she tries to rescue her brother Michael from Peter’s clutches.
‘Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare’ is playing in theaters for a limited run from January 13 to January 15, 2025, through Iconic Events Releasing.
