Buddy

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Buddy

R

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1h 35m

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Popcornmeter

88%

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134 Reviews

76%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Verified Ratings

Remember BUDDY--the bright orange unicorn and star of that classic children's television show who brought joy and life lessons into your living room? Inside the colorful world of "It's Buddy!", a group of children spend their days singing, dancing, and helping Buddy spread happiness. But when one child refuses to play along, Buddy is not pleased and cracks begin to appear in this seemingly perfect world.

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Critics Consensus

Buddy weaponizes the cheery conventions of children's entertainment into an inventive, hilarious, and creepy descent into pop culture madness.

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Audience Says

Intentionally weird and darkly funny, Buddy is to horror fans what Bluey is to millennial parents: chicken soup for the soul.

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Joey Shapiro

Chicago Reader

Sep 8, 2026

I’m also not sure if it has anything to say that hasn’t already been said by the numerous direct-to-Tubi movies that came before it.

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Alison Willmore

New York Magazine/Vulture

Sep 8, 2026

It wants to bring to mind is not some half-remembered children’s programming but an Adult Swim show that riffed on that sort of stuff. And, costume-character carnage aside, that’s just not as compelling.

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Robert Abele

Los Angeles Times

Sep 1, 2026

Enjoyably weird to the end, its horror soul in line with the creepypasta ethos of something undefined yet eternal.

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Nicholas Bell

Fish Jelly Films (YouTube)

1 day ago

3.5/5

Casper Kelly perverts the syrupy schmaltz of 90s children's television programs with Buddy, creating what feels like a trippy mixture of David Lynch and Lewis Carroll, seemingly intended to terrorize children and disturb adults.

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Edwin Arnaudin

Asheville Movies

1 day ago

B+

Certifiably insane.

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Joseph Tomastik

Loud and Clear Reviews

2 days ago

4.5/5

The most horrific thing to ever hit preschool programming since the creation of Caillou.

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Joe

2 hrs ago

Such a fun film. Wanted more after it was over. Not a single second did I feel the movie was dragging. Engaged from start to finish.

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Amarius

3 hrs ago

ending wasn’t that good

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Brian

12 hrs ago

It started getting weird and creepy with sexual talk around little kids. Perverts telling a little girl she was pretty. Pretty disgusting

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Drake

14 hrs ago

Great original idea with mind bending execution. Fun to watch whole way through. Some ideas and characters were simply left half baked which kept it from its full potential but still a solid watch and something to bring friends to.

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Clark

15 hrs ago

haven’t been this emotional over a mailbox since the incident

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Johanna

20 hrs ago

Live the comedy horror

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Buddy: Teaser - The Best Movie in the World!

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Synopsis

Remember BUDDY--the bright orange unicorn and star of that classic children's television show who brought joy and life lessons into your living room? Inside the colorful world of "It's Buddy!", a group of children spend their days singing, dancing, and helping Buddy spread happiness. But when one child refuses to play along, Buddy is not pleased and cracks begin to appear in this seemingly perfect world.

Director: Chris 'Casper' Kelly
Producer: Tyler Davidson, Drew Sykes, Raphael Margules, J.D. Lifshitz, Tracy Rosenblum
Screenwriter: Chris 'Casper' Kelly, Jamie King
Distributor: Roadside Attractions / Saban Films
Production Co: BoulderLight Pictures, Low Spark Films, Sipur Studios, Substance
Rating: R (Bloody Violence|Some Drug Content|Language)
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 28, 2026, Wide
Box Office (Gross USA): $21.2M
Runtime: 1h 35m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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