The minds behind the fairytale horror movie series known as the Twisted Childhood Universe (or Poohniverse) have unveiled the first poster for their next horrific fable: Pinocchio: Unstrung. Revealed by Bloody Disgusting , the poster teases a film where the magical wooden doll ditches his strings to go on a killing spree. While the original Pinocchio story follows a puppet who hopes to become a real boy, Pinocchio: Unstrung’s tagline teases a terrifying toy that won’t be the same naïve being fans know and love.
With the reveal comes the announcement that Child’s Play and Underworld Awakening makeup effects veteran Todd Masters has joined the film to create its title doll. See a first glimpse at a more unhinged Pinocchio in the full poster below. “The film will embrace practical effects at every opportunity, ranging from the doll itself to the title card of the film,” director Rhys Frake-Waterfield told Bloody Disgusting.
“Having a budget significantly higher than my last film, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2, I’m aiming to make this the definitive Pinocchio horror film and my best movie to date.” Pinocchio: Unstrung is set to begin filming in October. A worldwide release is planned to arrive sometime in 2025.
Frake-Waterfield says casting information “will follow shortly.” Although it shares some similarities with the ‘90s horror adaptation Pinocchio’s Revenge, the two films do not appear to be connected. The Twisted Childhood Universe was created.