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Screamboat is a 2025 American comedy horror film directed by Steven LaMorte. It is a reimagining of Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks's 1928 animated short film, Steamboat Willie. The plot follows a group of New Yorkers who are terrorized by a monstrous mouse named Steamboat Willie. It stars David Howard Thornton, Allison Pittel, Amy Schumacher, Jesse Posey, Kailey Hyman, Jesse Kove, and Jarlath Conroy.
Though the Walt Disney Company retains exclusive rights to its own Mickey Mouse universe, the Steamboat Willie version of the iconic character entered the public domain on January 1, 2024. One day later, Screamboat was announced.
Screamboat was released theatrically in the United States and United Kingdom on April 2, 2025, and later released on DVD, Blu-ray, and streaming in the United States on May 2, 2025. The film received mixed reviews from critics.
The princesses featured are Cindi (Cinderella), Ariana (Ariel), Jazzy (Jasmine), Bella (Belle), Ilsa (Elsa), and Rory (Aurora). Amber, an EMT, is named for Princess Amber of Sofia the First. It was Garcia-Dunn's idea to incorporate the princesses, because LaMorte had seen such party groups on the Staten Island Ferry on weekend nights in his 20s. Other characters named for Disney characters are Pete, after the original short's antagonist Pegleg Pete, and Aubrey, for Audrey Rose, the daughter of Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip in Sleeping Beauty.
They included in the dialogue such Disney Catchphrase as "It's a small world after all," "Be our guest," "Let it go," and "." LaMorte said that some allusions were subtle, such as a Mary Poppins reference. He even framed an appearance of the number 33 for the Disney Parks' Club 33. Distribution company Iconic Events had earlier released the horror movies Cinderella's Revenge (2024) and Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare (2025).
For a brief scene at the Staten Island Ferry's Liberty Café, LaMorte directed that the props department use "the genuine cheap beer being served" there.
Among the devices that Willie uses for his murders are a forklift, a blowtorch, fake ears, and a harpoon.
Steven LaMorte told The New York Post, "I'm from Staten Island, and I've always wanted to make a horror movie on the Staten Island ferry — you know, a slasher or murder mystery." He said, "I did a little research and found the Staten Island ferry was once powered by steam" (which is used for murder in a scene). The Post explains,
After an interview with producer Michael Leavy, a lifelong Staten Island resident, SILive reported that "Islanders should watch out for Easter eggs specific to the ferry, and hometown names that only locals will pick up on. (Hint: the snack counter)." One of these was the Staten Island Ferry's Liberty Café. Leavy told SILive,
Cinematograper Steven Della Salle also told SILive, "It's not a set. There's no faking it. This is the boat that everybody took to work, so when they see it, they're gonna know, like, 'I remember that,' and that's what's awesome for us."
SILive said that the characters were based on all types of common New York commuters: loud party girls, street performers, bench sleepers and Midwest transplants.
After the April 1, 2025, Manhattan premiere, SILive reported that "with David Howard Thornton prancing around the boat as the title role of Willie, this horror-comedy had the theater roaring with laughter."
Peter Debruge of Variety finds the movie fun, "as there's an illicit thrill in desecrating powerful brands, like Disney." Debruge described its manner as "channeling the 'Splatter film' vibe of directors like Peter Jackson and Eli Roth with decidedly far-from-G-rated gags." He concludes, "The murders may be grisly, but they're played almost entirely for laughs, as are the tossed-off references to any number of Disney movies. ... In what must have been a favor to someone, Tyler Posey pops up, manning the radio in a few no-value-added scenes, including a mid-credits Teaser trailer for a possible sequel. Unnecessary as that may be, it still sounds less disrespectful to the original IP than so many of the Disney-sanctioned live-action reboots."
Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com gave the film two out of four stars and wrote, "It's hard to imagine anyone stumbling into Screamboat without being aware of its intentions. It's not something people buy a ticket to when their Art film of choice isn't available. On that level, it almost works enough to recommend even to those not clamoring to see it." The Bloody Disgusting site, in a 2 out of 5 points review, says that the cartoonish violence "is enough to make a Disney purist rage and a Disney objector snicker." " Screamboat eagerly aims to please and gives its target audience exactly what they wanted. The kills don't always live up to the most imaginative of the collection, however, LaMorte gets points for enthusiasm and design. ... It would be a mistake to overthink Screamboat or overlook its appeal as subversive slapstick, however, like so many comedy bits out there, this movie loses its novelty sooner than later."
In a list of the 10 most shocking and gory scenes of the movie, Screen Rant finds it "similar to the TCU and the Terrifier movies in the shocking level of gore." The reviewer comments that the special effects "team used practical effects, blood, and prosthetics that are as impressive as they are disturbing to look at. Ultimately, this decision paid off, giving Screamboat a campy, B movie slasher feeling." They add, "It's also nice to watch a slasher film where not every death happens in the same, predictable way."
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