The Peter Pan mythos is a long one. The character, created by J.M. Barrie, has featured heavily throughout pop culture, and Disney fans will be more than familiar with the 1953 classic animated tale, Peter Pan. But another adaptation is here–and it changes everything audiences thought we knew about Peter and his fairy sidekick, Tinker Bell.

When it comes to The Walt Disney Company’s rendition of the Peter Pan story, the movie is a product of its time. Over the years since its release, opinions have sprouted about the controversial nature of Disney’s animated movie, so much so that the film–along with others–carries a sensitivity warning on Disney+.
“These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now,” the non-skippable disclaimer reads. “Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together.”

Further acknowledging its past, Disney outlined why Peter Pan specifically carries the warning. “The film portrays Native people in a stereotypical manner that reflects neither the diversity of Native peoples nor their authentic cultural traditions,” Disney’s own Stories Matter webpage reads. “It shows them speaking in an unintelligible language and repeatedly refers to them as “redskins,” an offensive term.”
“Peter and the Lost Boys engage in dancing, wearing headdresses and other exaggerated tropes, a form of mockery and appropriation of Native peoples’ culture and imagery,” the analysis concludes.

All that to say, Peter Pan, while fairytale-esque on the outside, has always carried controversy with it. It has always been a conversation and likely always will be. And that conversation begins anew with the latest entry into the Twisted Childhood Universe, or as it is colloquially known, the “Poohniverse.”
Peter Pan’s Nightmare Neverland, directed by Scott Chambers (AKA Scott Jeffrey), follows Wendy Darling (Megan Placito) as she attempts to rescue her brother Michael (Peter DeSouza-Feighoney), who has been abducted by Peter Pan (Martin Portlock) and Tinker Bell (Kit Green). Like any adaptation, Peter Pan’s Nightmare Neverland changes things, and one major twist is the backstory of Green’s Tinker Bell.

“The figure who eventually becomes known as Tinker Bell is biologically born male and named Timmy, an earlier victim of Peter Pan, who in this world is a demented child-napper hellbent on sending young boys to Neverland,” Entertainment Weekly explained. “Because Timmy identifies as female, Pan won’t let her become one of his Lost Boys.”
“She didn’t fit the criteria to actually be sent fully to Neverland,” Chambers told EW. “Then he says, however, you can be something else. You can be this fairy, you can be magical, but you’ve got to help me. I’ll give you this pixie dust, and if you keep taking it…Every time you are good, you can have some.”
Of course, being the Twisted Childhood Universe, it’s certainly not pixie dust Peter is giving to Tinker Bell, but heroin.
Her drug-addled body can be seen in the first-look images Entertainment Weekly shared of this new “Poohniverse” outing, as well as a video of Tinker Bell’s interaction with Michael Darling (DeSouza-Feighoney), whom she and Peter are aiming to abduct. Just like Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, this version of a childhood favorite is definitely just for adults.

“This is not a villain at all,” Chambers explained of Tink to EW. “This is an extremely layered character. This is someone that’s really troubled. They’re brainwashed. It’s Stockholm Syndrome. They’ve been in this situation for years and years and years. They don’t know any other way.”
What began with the widely panned but box office success Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey and continued with the 2024 sequel will expand into a cinematic universe featuring more so-called childhood favorites.
Following Peter Pan’s Nightmare Neverland in 2025 will be Bambi: The Reckoning (2025), Pinocchio: Unstrung (2025), and Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble (2025). Similar to how the MCU brought the Avengers together in 2012, so too will Jagged Edge Productions for Monsters Assemble.

Further down the line will be Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3 (2026) and the to-be-dated Awakening Sleeping Beauty and Snow White Returns.
Peter Pan’s Nightmare Neverland is already out in theaters for its three-day stint, running from January 13 through January 15. On the future of Kit Green’s Tinker Bell character, Chambers said:
“There’s gonna be some fun with Tinkerbell. I’m excited […] I have an idea that she’s going to have massive heroin arms, like needles as arms and needles coming out. It’d be quite fun. It’s got to go above and beyond, I think, in that one.”
How do you feel about this adult adaptation of Peter Pan? Will you be heading out to see it? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!