Women Talking director Sarah Polley in talks to helm Bambi live-action film for Disney

Women Talking director Sarah Polley is in talks to helm a live-action remake of Bambi for Disney.

The filmmaker, 44, who won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar this year for the Rooney Mara-helmed flick, is being lined up to direct the feature which is in very ‘early development’, reports Deadline.

The intention to adapt the 1942 classic was first announced in 2020 with Depth of Field production, created by Chris and Paul Weitz set to take to charge of producing the film and Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Lindsey Beer as writers. 

However the current writers and production team is unknown, with the start date for the project also up in the air. 

The original Disney children’s classic and 1928 book told a tale of love, life and loss for young fawn Bambi, with the film’s most heart wrenching moment coming when Bambi’s mother is shot by hunters. 

1942 classic: The filmmaker, 44, who won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar this year for the Rooney Mara-helmed flick, is being lined up to direct the feature which is in very ‘early development’, reports Deadline 

Fans are to expect the ‘same photo-realistic CGI’ used in prior remakes – such as Disney and director Jon Favreau’s The Lion King – to tell the story of everyone’s favorite fawn.

The film’s arch carries along some heavy themes, such as coping with loss and questioning the morality of hunting.

Seeing the loss of Bambi’s mother played out in all too life-like CGI form may be disturbing for some viewers, but isn’t likely to be a deterrent. 

Back in November it was revealed the director behind Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey was planning a horror take on Bambi – with a new film entitled Bambi: The Reckoning.

The independent horror film about the beloved storybook characters in Hundred Acre Wood going on a killing spree wowed fans – and director Rhys Frake-Waterfield was hoping a ‘Bambi on rabies’ take on the classic tale will have the same reception.

However, viewers familiar with the doe-eyed Bambi  will be in for a shock as  director Scott Jeffrey – who will work alongside executive producer Frake-Waterfield, said the deer will represent the antler/human body hybrid seen in Netflix’s The Ritual.

He told DreadCentral: ‘The film will be an incredibly dark retelling of the 1928 story we all know and love. Finding inspiration from the design used in Netflix’s The Ritual, Bambi will be a vicious killing machine that lurks in the wilderness. Prepare for Bambi on rabies!”

The announcement comes hot on the heels of another horror remake – Frake-Waterfield revealed  he is planning new film Neverland Nightmare, around wholesome character Peter Pan.

Peter Pan, the iconic free-spirited young boy who can fly and never grows up, has frequently been portrayed on screen, but this will mark only his second outing as a horror character, after Robbie Kay’s malevolent portrayal in Once Upon a Time.

Heavy themes: The film deals directly with loss, as Bambi loses his mother in the first few minutes of the film 

Acclaimed: Women Talking – starring Rooney Mara (pictured) won critical acclaim

All too real: Disney transformed The Lion King into a live-action feature in 2019