Bambi is the

title character The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piëce. The title o ...

Felix Salten Felix Salten (; 6 September 1869 – 8 October 1945) was an Austrian author and Literary criticism, literary critic. His most famous work is ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'', which was adapted into an animated feature film, ''Bambi'', by Walt Disne ...

's 1923 novel, ''

Bambi, a Life in the Woods ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'' () is a 1923 Austrian coming-of-age novel written by Felix Salten, and originally published in Berlin by Ullstein Verlag. The novel traces the life of Bambi, a male roe deer, from his birth through childhood, t ...

'', and its sequel, ''

Bambi's Children ''Bambi's Children: The Story of a Forest Family'' () is a 1939 coming-of-age novel, coming-of-age novel written by Austrian author Felix Salten as a sequel to his 1923 work ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods''. Background The sequel to ''Bambi'' follo ...

.'' The character also appears in Salten's novels '' Perri'' and '' Fifteen Rabbits''. Early

German-language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. It is a ...

editions of the novels were illustrated by Hans Bertle. In the Disney film adaptations, Bambi's species was changed from a roe deer to a

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known Common name, commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer, is a medium-sized species of deer native to North America, North, Central America, Central and South America. It is the ...

, which would be more familiar to American audiences. His image is a Disney icon, comparable to the recognition of

Jiminy Cricket Jiminy Cricket is the Disney version of the Talking Cricket, a fictional character created by Italian writer Carlo Collodi for his 1883 children's book ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'', which Walt Disney adapted into the animated film '' Pinoc ...

Tinker Bell Tinker Bell is a fictional character from J. M. Barrie's 1904 play '' Peter Pan'' and its 1911 novelisation '' Peter and Wendy''. She has appeared in a variety of film and television adaptations of the Peter Pan stories, in particular the 1953 ...

, and he is even shown on Disney

stock certificate In company (law), corporate law, a stock certificate (also known as certificate of stock or share certificate) is a legal document that certifies the legal interest (a bundle of several legal rights) of ownership of a specific number of share ...

Adaptations

Bambi has appeared in multiple adaptations of Salten's books.

Disney films

''Bambi'' (1942)

In the first film, Bambi is not very strongly personalized to strengthen the environmental perspective of the film. Bambi, as with most of his friends, could be any deer in any forest. In his early youth, Bambi has wide eyes, spindly legs, a curious nature and high-pitched voice. As he grows, he gradually becomes more mature, but even in young adulthood, he seems a very young buck with a delicate build and a fairly naïve nature. The naturalistic animation in the first film was helped by a pair of four-month-old fawns sent to the studio by

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

game wardens. However, human models were also used for one scene: actress

Jane Randolph Jane Randolph (née Roemer; October 30, 1914 – May 4, 2009), was an American film actress. She is best known for her portrayals of Alice Moore in the 1942 horror film ''Cat People (1942 film), Cat People'', and its sequel, ''The Curse of the ...

and

Ice Capades The Ice Capades were traveling entertainment shows featuring theatrical ice skating performances. Shows often featured former Winter Olympic Games, Olympic and United States Figure Skating Championships, US National Champion figure skating, figur ...

star Donna Atwood acted as live-action references for the scene where Bambi and Thumper are on ice. Disney also had Rico LeBrun, a painter of animals, come to the studio to lecture on the structure and movement of animals. Nature photographer Maurice Day spent months in a forest in Maine, recording animals for the animators, as well.Thomas, Bob: "Chapter 6: Expansion and War: ''Bambi''", page 90. ''Disney's Art of Animation: From Mickey Mouse to Hercules'', 1997

''Bambi II'' (2006)

In ''Bambi II'', Bambi is much more distinctly personalized. In this film which fills in the gap between the death of his mother and when he was next shown as a young adult, Bambi finds himself faced with a number of challenges. First, there is the death of his mother and his consequential move to live with his father, the Great Prince of the Forest. His father is reluctant to learn to be a father. In addition, Bambi begins to fall in love with Faline, and comes into conflict with an older fawn called Ronno (the same deer he would later fight over Faline with as a young adult). Whereas in the first film he follows life wherever it led him, in this film he is more assertive in order to bond with and impress his father. In the first film, Bambi's status as the young prince had little impact on the flow of the story. In this film, his rank becomes a key part of the storyline as he sets out to prove to himself and others, most of all his father, demonstrating that he deserves to be prince and can live up to his father's name.

''Bambi Meets Godzilla'' (1969)

Bambi appears in the 1969

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

film ''Bambi Meets Godzilla'', in which he is killed by

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films p ...

''Bambi's Childhood'' (1985)

Bambi is the protagonist of the Soviet film ''Bambi's Childhood''. It is an adaptation of the 1923 novel.

''Bambi: The Reckoning'' (2025)

On November 21, 2022, a live-action horror film titled '' Bambi: The Reckoning'' was announced to be in development by ITN Studios and Jagged Edge Productions with Scott Jeffrey directing and writing, and

Rhys Frake-Waterfield Rhys Frake-Waterfield (born ) is a British filmmaker who became known for his 2023 independent horror film '' Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey'' and its 2024 sequel. It was the first theatrical film of his career, as well as the first for his co ...

serving as a producer. The film will be about Bambi getting revenge after the death of his mother. Jeffrey described the film as "an incredibly dark retelling of the 1928 story we all know and love. Finding inspiration from the design used in

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

's '' The Ritual'', Bambi will be a vicious killing machine that lurks in the wilderness."

References

External links

Bambi
at Disney Archives {{Authority control Bambi characters Fictional deer and moose Anthropomorphic deer and moose Fictional princes Fictional kings Literary characters introduced in 1923 Child characters in animated films Male characters in animation Male characters in literature Male characters in film White-tailed deer Roe deer