Pinocchio: Unstrung (2026)
Pinocchio: Unstrung is a dark, independent slasher-horror film directed by Rhys Frake-Waterfield. It serves as the fifth installment in the Twisted Childhood Universe (TCU)—popularly known as the "Poohniverse." The film completely subverts Carlo Collodi's classic 1883 fairy tale into a gruesome body-horror nightmare.
The plot follows Geppetto (Richard Brake), who crafts a sentient wooden puppet named Pinocchio using a piece of magical wood. He gives the puppet to his grandson, James (Cameron Bell), who recently lost his parents and best friend. At first, Pinocchio acts as an overprotective friend to James, heavily mirroring a lethal protector mindset.
However, things take a sinister turn due to Pinocchio's naïve nature and the influence of a corrupt, manipulative Cricket (voiced by horror legend Robert Englund). Struggling to understand human morality and emotions, Pinocchio misinterprets how to eliminate "bad things" from James's life.
Driven by a distorted, overwhelming obsession to become a "real boy" just like his human brother James, Pinocchio unleashes a brutal wave of violence. He targets students and staff inside an elite London prep school, launching a gory crusade to literally carve himself into a human, one piece of flesh at a time.
