- Screamboat is based on Steamboat Willie, the forerunner of Mickey Mouse
- Ensemble cast being assembled – including horror veterans
- Steamboat Willie entered the public domain at the start of the year
David Howard Thornton, based known for playing iconic villain Art the Clown in the Terrifier series, is the latest addition to the Disney-inspired horror film Screamboat.
Screamboat is a film based on Steamboat Willie – the character who went on to become Mickey Mouse. Thornton will play the lead character.
Ensemble cast
Thornton joins various other notables in the cast, including Amy Schumacher (The Mean One), Allison Pittel (Stream) and Jesse Kove (Cobra Kai), as well as veterans such as Jarlath Conroy (Day of the Dead) and Charles Edwin Powell (The Exorcist III). More famous names from the world of horror who are making cameos in the film are set to be revealed over the summer.
The synopsis for Screamboat, according to the teaser poster, says the film “follows a group of New Yorkers on a late-night ferry ride that turns deadly when a mischievous mouse begins a rampage, targeting unsuspecting passengers. The unlikely crew must band together to thwart the murderous menace before their relaxing commute turns into a nightmare.”
Public domain
Screamboat can use the likeness of Steamboat Willie as the character entered the public domain on January 1 – meaning that it is no longer subject to copyright. Characters are only under copyright for 95 years – this is how we came to have the horror film Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey last year and its upcoming sequel.
It is anticipated that Screamboat will be released sometime in 2025. Thornton can be seen before that in the third instalment of the Terrifier franchise, which is released on October 11, as well as in horror move Stream.
