# Films about grownup characters from childrens' books **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 4, 2018, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749 "2018-09-04T17:11:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/1 "2018-09-04T17:11:50Z")
We spent a rainy Labor Day seeing _Christopher Robin_, a surprisingly well-done film in which Ewan MacGregor as Responsible Adult C.R. Milne encounters his childhood friends from the Hundred Acres Woods and learns how to be a child again. But there was no escaping the comparison to _Hook_, where Responsible Adult Peter goes back to Neverland, or to the trailer for the upcoming _Mary Poppins Returns_, this time to straighten up the children of Responsible Adult Michael Banks. Did I miss any other members of the genre? Are any others coming up? Will Disney treat us to Responsible Adult Jim Hawkins returning to _Treasure Island_ next, for instance? Could the pandering to the middle-aged-parent demographic be any more blatant? And do the mothers ever need saving, or just the workaholic dads? ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/2 "2018-09-04T18:03:00Z")
Years ago there was a movie about Alice (in wonderland) Liddell’s visit to New York to celebrate the books anniversary. The movie was fairly good. But not surprisingly coy about “what really happened”. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen it but I recall it taking place in the real world. So no scenes of adult Alice trying to deal with the characters from the book. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/3 "2018-09-04T19:25:30Z")
Never mind. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/4 "2018-09-04T19:44:38Z")
[Hook](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hook_(film)) starring Robin Williams as a grown up Peter Pan ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/5 "2018-09-04T19:49:42Z")
I can’t think of other solid examples ([this](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/KidHeroAllGrownUp) is the closest trope I could find) but Drop \*Dead Fred \*can sorta be forced into the slot (not a grown-up character from a children’s book, but a grown-up reencountering her childhood imaginary friend and destroying Carrie Fisher’s home for the second time in a movie.) ETA: also, _Hook_. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/6 "2018-09-04T20:06:23Z")
> [@furryman](#): > > Years ago there was a movie about Alice (in wonderland) Liddell’s visit to New York to celebrate the books anniversary. The movie was fairly good. But not surprisingly coy about “what really happened”. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen it but I recall it taking place in the real world. So no scenes of adult Alice trying to deal with the characters from the book. The movie was _Dreamchild_ and it was released 33 years ago in 1985. She was visiting New York to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Lewis Carroll’s birth. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamchild](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamchild) ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/7 "2018-09-04T20:54:14Z")
“Olive, the Other Reindeer” is a cute children’s story about a dog named Olive who thinks she’s another reindeer for Santa’s sleigh. The Comedy Central program, which is 30 minutes long, is definitely NOT for children. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/8 "2018-09-04T21:32:51Z")
Not quite the same thing, but _Labyrinth_ is about a young lady right at that transition point between “childish magic” and “boring grown-up who needs to learn to remember childhood”. And I’m surprised that nobody mentioned _Hook_, especially not in the OP or posts 4 or 5. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/9 "2018-09-04T22:57:59Z")
We have 2 movies from Tim Burton about Alice as an adult (starting out as a confused 19 year old, and ending as a responsible and independent woman). She goes back to Underland and tries to fix things (little did she know that the whole thing was the White Queen’s fault for being unable ever to admit that she was a greedy pig as a child.Do those count? ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/10 "2018-09-05T11:14:37Z")
> [@furryman](#): > > Years ago there was a movie about Alice (in wonderland) Liddell’s visit to New York to celebrate the books anniversary. The movie was fairly good. But not surprisingly coy about “what really happened”. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen it but I recall it taking place in the real world. So no scenes of adult Alice trying to deal with the characters from the book. Also not quite on topic, but I’ll mention it anyway: the play Peter and Alice, about Alice Liddell and Peter Llewelyn Davies meeting. ([Peter and Alice - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_and_Alice)) j ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/11 "2018-09-05T13:14:29Z")
[Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hansel_%26_Gretel:_Witch_Hunters) fits the bill. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/12 "2018-09-05T13:45:26Z")
Philip Jose Farmer’s _To Your Scattered Bodies Go_ has a grownup Alice Pleasance Liddell as a major character. ---
**Author:** ![Sloe\_Moe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sloe\_Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sloe_Moe)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2018, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/13 "2018-09-13T07:07:37Z")
You should lobby film makers to do “School for Good and Evil”. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2018, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/14 "2018-09-13T13:00:50Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And I’m surprised that nobody mentioned _Hook_, especially not in the OP or posts 4 or 5. Um, the OP _did_. Yours truly, The OP ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/15 "2018-09-13T18:52:02Z")
It isn’t a movie but the comic book Unwritten uses this premise for a Harry Potter type character (it is actually more compicated than that but I think it fits what the OP is looking for). ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2018, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/films-about-grownup-characters-from-childrens-books/820749/16 "2018-09-13T19:11:49Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Um, the OP _did_. > > Yours truly, > The OP Whoosh.