Release Date: April 28, 2023
Directed By: David Lowery
Written By: David Lowery and Toby Halbrooks
Starring: Jude Law, Alexander Molony, Ever Anderson, Yara Shahidi, Joshua Pickering, Jacobi Jupe, Molly Parker, and Alan Tudyk
Rating: PG for violence, peril and thematic elements
Runtime: 103 minutes
Some mild SPOILERS are ahead for Peter Pan & Wendy, now streaming with a Disney+ subscription.
Though at his core he’s never meant to grow up, Peter Pan has also been around now across the over a century. And, when you're around pop culture for that long, the classic character has certainly seen some edits to his lore along the way, most recently with David Lowery’s Peter Pan & Wendy. The latest live-action Disney remake of an animated film is a more grounded version of the story, with some notable changes from past iterations.
When CinemaBlend spoke to the writer/director behind the new adaptation of the Peter Pan story, we discussed one popular character choice that he chose not to include. Between the original 1953 Disney film, to the 2003 cult favorite, there’s been an air of romance in the past between the boy who wouldn’t grow up and Wendy and Tinker Bell. Lowery shared his thoughts on the subject:
I just felt it wasn't necessary. I just was like, let's take that off the table, and just not have that be a part of this story. If the characters had been a little bit older, it would've naturally come into play, but I just think it was necessary.
Remember the animated version? Tinker Bell was characterized as a jealous fairy who refused to share Wendy. Then, I feel like in multiple iterations I’ve seen of Peter Pan, the actors have seemed to be interested in Wendy, even though he’s basically recruiting her to be his and the Lost Boys’ mother. Weird vibes, am I right? Makes sense why Lowery decided to skip the popular character choice for his version.
The Peter Pan & Wendy cast is primarily quite young as well, as he pointed out. What makes this version special is the exploration of Jude Law’s Captain Hook, which Law spoke to CinemaBlend in depth about during the interview as well. Additionally, the movie dives into the messages of what it means to grow up. The scene where Wendy’s “happy thoughts” on the plank is imagining herself getting older was particularly an important part of the film, as Lowery shared:
It really was this idea that was very central to me, that her happy thoughts needed to be inclusive of the idea of growing up as a character. She needed to get comfortable and indeed look forward to the potential that growing up represents. And so earlier in the film, we have her think back to her happy thoughts, and they're all looking backwards. They're all, when she was younger, when she was a little girl, and they're in that moment when she thinks maybe she's at the end of her life and is gonna have to jump off this plank. She thinks about all the things she has to look forward to. And that was really important and meaningful to me to include.
Peter Pan is just one of those stories that is always going to be retold by new filmmakers with new perspectives on the material. As far as this one goes, audiences are overall mixed on David Lowery’s Peter Pan & Wendy. CinemaBlend’s own Peter Pan & Wendy review awarded the film an overall positive 3.5 out of 5, saying it “misses some opportunities to possibly elevate the material” but found it “pretty entertaining” as well. You can check out the movie, and decide for yourself, now streaming only on Disney+.
