Martin Portlock and Kit Green are taking on two classic children’s characters with a terrifying twist in Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare. Portlock and Green suit up as Peter Pan and Tinker Bell, respectively. Instead of being the cheery guides to Neverland that audiences know them to be, Peter Pan is a serial-killing kidnapper, while Tinker Bell is a drug-addicted henchman.

Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare is the latest installment in the Twisted Childhood Universe, an interconnected franchise of classic children’s characters with a slasher spin. The Scott Chambers-produced world began in 2023 with Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey and is set to continue with projects like Bambi: The Reckoning and Pinnochio: Unstrung. All installments are building to a crossover film, Poohniverse: Monsters. ᴀssembled, which is planned to go into production this summer.

In celebration of Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare‘s limited theatrical release, ScreenRant spoke with Portlock and Green to discuss their initial reactions to the this film’s sadistic script, how their renditions of Peter Pan and Tinker Bell honor the spirit of the classic characters, and what’s in store for them in future TCU installments.

Portlock & Green Were “So Thrown” By Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare‘s Script

“It is a Peter Pan that no one’s ever seen…”

ScreenRant: When you first heard the concept of taking these beloved characters and putting a slasher twist on them, what was your first reaction?

Martin Portlock: Okay, so I was sat down with the script, I opened it and I go, ‘He’s a what?!’ I was so thrown. I was so thrown by it. And ultimately it is a Peter Pan that no one’s ever seen. You think he’s going to be some form of Peter Pan that everyone can relate to, when in fact, Scott completely flipped it on his head, but keeping it very, very serious and very niche and a nice reflection on JM Barrie’s original writings. So instantly there was this psychological issue that this character was going through and that drew me to that character As an actor, I thought it was absolutely fascinating. So I really wanted to get my teeth in and really kind of mix it up a little bit.

Kit Green: Yeah, I think I thought originally this would be a great chance to be scary because I’ve not really done that. And so that was my initial response. And then when I read the full script and then talked Scott about what he was intending, I was like, ‘Oh, I get to be a bit scary actually, but with a lot of depth as well.’ And then be tragic and everything as well. So I was like, ‘Oh wow, this is much, much, much richer than I originally thought it was.’

Neverland Nightmare‘s Peter Pan & Tinker Bell Capture The Characters’ Essences

“Whether that perception of Neverland is the same between people is another thing…”

This film’s Tinker Bell is very different from any interpretation we’ve seen before. What did you do to ensure that your Tinker Bell still captures the spirit of the character that we are all familiar with?

Kit Green: I really wanted to keep that had this sort of lightness and this sort of magicalness, if you know what I mean, that she could dream and she could believe things and she wasn’t just a victim. She had all these things happening in her and she was a little bit sparky and still had a little touch of that sort of naughtiness, the naughty fairy thing despite everything she’d been through. Yes, a lightness I suppose, which is saying a lot given everything that was happening.

And Martin, same question to you. How did you make sure that your Peter Pan was still the Peter Pan that we know despite all the slasher twists?

Martin Portlock: So obviously, Peter Pan has set beliefs. We know there’s a Neverland, and we know the story of Peter Pan, but whether that perception of Neverland is the same between people is another thing. So with Peter Pan, Neverland is a very real place. He truly believes that this place is where he belongs as via the original writings. He wants to be a little boy forever, but he’s clearly not. And again, that ties into that psychological kind of what’s going on in this guy’s head and to try and create that along with the keeping of that original kind of Pan pattern, if you like. That was a challenge. But yeah, just trying to navigate through those psychological avenues because it was such an intense character.

Peter Pan & Tinker Bell’s TCU Futures After Neverland Nightmare Confirmed

Both Characters Will Return In Monsters ᴀssembled Crossover Film

I talked with Scott recently, and he has big ambitions for mᴀssive crossovers with all the different movies and all the different characters. Do both of you know what your future holds within the TCU?

Martin Portlock: I know a bit.

Kit Green: And I know a bit. We know what that Poohniverse has been. That’s definitely happening and we’re in it. So yeah, I mean I love his world-building. It’s very seductive, isn’t it, Martin? It is. He really draws you into it, and it makes you go, ‘Oh yeah, okay, I can see that. All right then. Let’s do that.’ So yeah, it’s exciting.

Martin Portlock: What I’m most interested in and looking forward to regarding the Twisted Childhood Universe is you’ve got these movies, you’ve got Peter Pan, and you’ve got Bambi and Pinocchio and Pooh Bear, and you’ve got ’em all coming out. They’re all very different styles of film and I am intrigued and I am excited to see how they meld in one movie because obviously because they’re all so different. It’s like, how are these characters going to work? How is this movie going to play out? I’m excited for that. It is Creation 101 and I adore it.

About Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare

The newest entry into the Poohniverse follows Wendy Darling as she strikes out in an attempt to rescue her brother Michael from the clutches of the evil Peter Pan, who intends to send him to Neverland. Along the way, she meets a twisted Tinkerbell, who is hooked on what she thinks is fairy dust.

Check out our other Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare interviews with…

• Director Scott Chambers
• Peter DeSouza-Feighoney