The Return of Steamboat Willie looks like another generic horror cash grab

Stop me if you've heard this one before; there's a new Steamboat Willie-inspired adaptation and it's — surprise, surprise — a horror film. Revealed this week, The Return of Steamboat Willie is a horror film inspired by a classic 1928 cartoon character who recently entered the public domain this year.

A two-minute teaser trailer for The Return of Steamboat Willie was shared alongside the announcement and it looks like another generic horror movie trying to capitalize on the hype surrounding Steamboat Willie, and the fact that people can do what they want with the character (within reason, that is).

But despite the limitless potential, it seems many creators are simply flocking toward low-budget, generic-looking horror movies and games. The latest looks like a shameless cash grab.

The Return of Steamboat Wille is being created entirely in Unreal Engine by Fewture Studios. That's about all that sets it apart from other projects we've seen involving the character.

The first half of the trailer actually starts off promising. But then it quickly devolves into a run-of-the-mill horror flick, capped off by a predictable jump scare.

It's boring, unoriginal, and disappointing, to say the least. With so much untapped potential surrounding these classic works of art that are now entering the public domain, it's discouraging that everyone seemingly goes the route of horror movie. We saw it with Winnie the Pooh, and now we are seeing it with Steamboat Willie.

Why can't someone do something truly original with the character? Why does everything have to be a lazy horror flick? I mean, I know the reason — it's cheap to make and usually popular because it's the polar opposite from what we're used to seeing with a normally family-friendly character.

But really, how many horror adaptations do we need of the same character? And why are they all so cheap-looking? At this point, it'd be more original to create a non-horror adaptation of Steamboat Willie. But hey, at least this one is on a boat.