Betty Boop Enters the Public Domain Slasher Club
Move over, Pooh Bear — Betty Boop is getting her turn to draw blood. The beloved 1930s cartoon icon is next in line for a horror makeover, joining the rapidly growing list of childhood favorites who have gone feral since entering the public domain. Following in the paw prints of Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, Mickey’s Mouse Trap, Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare, and even Bambi: The Reckoning, the once-flirty flapper is now a full-blown femme fatale with a body count.
According to Variety, VMI Worldwide is introducing the film — simply titled Boop for now — to buyers at the American Film Market, with Furst Class Productions behind the project. The feature is described as a “re-imagining” of the classic cartoon but told firmly through a horror lens, which basically means the curls are staying but the innocence is not.
The story follows a team of horror podcasters who break into an abandoned theater to investigate reports of paranormal activity linked to a long-forgotten screen siren. What begins as a standard ghost hunt quickly becomes a massacre when the vengeful spirit of Betty Boop decides she’s had enough of being objectified and left behind. Instead of Boop-Oop-a-Doop, we get Boop-Oop-a-Doom.
Devanny Pinn is stepping into the title role — which is quite possibly the most cursed casting call in recent memory — alongside Katisha Shaw, Spencer Breslin, Eva Hamilton, and Colton Tran. The film will be directed by Jared Cohn, a veteran of B-movie mayhem known for Jailbait and Atlantic Rim, from a screenplay by Jose Prendes (Mega Shark vs. Mecha Shark) and Josh Ridgway (The Flood). Pinn and Shaw are also producing, alongside Jarrett Furst and Jessica Russo.
In a statement to Variety, Russo explained what makes this one different from the other public domain bloodbaths:
“Getting your classic cartoon told as a horror film is still mind-blowing, but what sets Boop apart from all the other horror IPs is her motivation. Boop’s dark history is extremely grim, but this telling allows her to get her power back. A true testament to feminism led by a predominantly female team.”
Producer Jarrett Furst added:
“When I learned this cartoon was entering the public domain, I knew there was something special waiting to happen. This team—brimming with extraordinary talent both in front of and behind the camera—absolutely blew me away. I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. Get ready for a wildly violent, ridiculously fun ride… and trust me, this is only the beginning.”
Created by Max Fleischer and Grim Natwick, Betty Boop first appeared in 1930 and quickly became an animated icon — part jazz-age sweetheart, part sex symbol, and a constant headache for censors. Over the decades she’s headlined everything from cartoons and comics to a Broadway musical, and even made a cameo in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Now, almost a century later, she’s swapping catchy scat singing for screaming.
The rise of public domain horror has become its own bizarre trend. In just the last few years, we’ve seen everything from blood-soaked bears to murderous mice to a vengeful Cinderella. Some of these projects are terrible, a few are surprisingly entertaining, and all of them prove that if a character is old enough to be free, someone out there is ready to make them stab people.
Betty Boop’s entry into the genre might just be the wildest yet. The thought of a flapper ghost stalking podcasters in an art deco theater feels exactly like the fever dream the public domain was invented for. Whether Boop turns out to be a fun, feminist splatterfest or a surreal misfire, one thing’s certain — she’s back, baby, and she’s got a bone saw.
