The 1942 classic “Bambi” is one of the most beautiful animated movies ever made.
Many had their hearts torn to pieces by the death of Bambi's mother. It’s the most iconic scene of the entire film, and has surely traumatized many who first saw it. However, rest assured, the live action version of the Disney classic is going to be less traumatic.
In development since 2020, this “Bambi” remake is progressing to the point where a production date is coming very soon. Screenwriter Lindsey Anderson Beer, who left the project last year, tells Collider that this new version will be adapted for our times:
Not to spoil the plot, but there’s a treatment of the mom dying that I think some kids, some parents these days are more sensitive about than they were in the past. And I think that’s one of the reasons that they haven’t shown it to their children
Beer is convinced that the scene where the mother is shot and killed would no longer be accepted in a children's film today:
I do think there is a way to update Bambi and our take on it was… did give a little bit more of a scope to it. And I just think that to be able to bring it to life for kids these days in a way that maybe they relate to a little bit more would be of service to the original.
In David Kerrick Hand's classic, Bambi's mother was killed by hunters. A scene that has traumatized many generations. It is not yet known if screenwriters Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (Transparent) will keep this idea, but it is quite likely that the studio has decided to remove it so as not to offend today’s sensibilities.
Polley’s “Bambi”, set for release in 2025, might therefore not include the sequence with the hunters. As if we couldn’t despise Disney more, nixing out this scene is an odd creative decision. Bambi’s mother should absolutely die at the beginning of the film, it sets up the emotional stakes for the rest of the film.
If you remember, Jon Favreau left Mufasa's death scene in his live-action version of the ‘Lion King.’ Why can’t they do the same thing for “Bambi”?