On a foggy, cold night in New York City, the Staten Island Ferry Joseph Pulitzer prepares for its final voyage of the day, carrying a diverse group of passengers. Among them are everyday commuters, a deckhand named Pete, a weary EMT named Amber, Lieutenant Diaz, and a lively bachelorette party of six women--Cindi, Jazzy, Bella, Ilsa, Ariana, and Rory--dressed as parody princesses. The ferry departs from the Whitehall Terminal, gliding away from the Manhattan skyline into the dark harbor, setting the stage for a nightmarish ordeal.

Beneath the ferry's decks, an ancient and once-innocent figure stirs: Steamboat Willie, a character inspired by the 1928 animated short but now transformed into a mute, malevolent entity. Once a joyful icon, Willie has become corrupted by neglect and time, evolving into a homicidal creature driven by a sinister impulse to terrorize the passengers aboard the ferry.

As the ferry moves farther from shore, strange and unsettling phenomena begin to manifest. The lights flicker erratically, the ship creaks with unnatural groans, and eerie echoes reverberate through the corridors. Cindi, separated from her friends while taking selfies, disappears mysteriously. Later, her bloodied phone and tiara are found embedded in a wall pipe, ominously stained with blood, signaling the beginning of the carnage.

Panic spreads as the ferry's power falters and control systems fail. Amber, the EMT, attempts to maintain order, while Pete searches for the captain, only to find the control room deserted and a locked supply closet with strange drag marks leading to it. The passengers realize they are trapped on a drifting vessel, isolated and unable to summon help.

Jazzy, drawn by a haunting melody from the galley, discovers a distorted record player spinning a warped version of "Turkey in the Straw." There, Steamboat Willie attacks her with a butcher's cleaver, mutilating her face before dragging her screaming into a deep fryer. Later, her severed hand is found floating in a punch bowl at the bachelorette party, a grim token of the horror unfolding.

A TikTok couple attempts to livestream their escape, but their efforts end in gruesome violence. The boyfriend is harpooned through the head, his phone and skull pinned to the wall, while the girlfriend is dragged screaming into the engine room, her cries drowned out by the mechanical sounds and the eerie laughter of a looping cartoon.

Pete tries to use the emergency radio but finds it smashed by a massive mallet made of metal and pipes. Willie then attacks him, choking him with an anchor chain and hoisting his body from the mast like a grotesque marionette.

As the death toll rises, only Amber, Lieutenant Diaz, Bella, and Rory remain alive. They take refuge in the control room, where they discover security footage revealing Willie stalking previous passengers on earlier nights, confirming the creature's long history of violence. Amber's mental state deteriorates as the trauma of the situation blends with her own past medical burnout, blurring the lines between reality and nightmare.

Lieutenant Diaz fashions makeshift weapons from fire axes and broken mop handles, preparing for a desperate stand. However, Bella falls victim to a cruel trap when Willie, driving a forklift like a twisted parade float, impales her through the abdomen, ending her life in a brutal display.

Amber and Rory venture into the cargo hold, confronting a macabre tableau: Willie has arranged the bodies of victims in grotesque, cartoonish dioramas. One woman is trapped inside a blood-soaked teacup ride, another spins on a music box with her organs exposed, creating a nightmarish parody of amusement.

In a climactic confrontation, Willie appears, singed and smoking, wielding a whistle that emits deadly steam like a flamethrower. Amber lures him into the engine gear chamber and ignites a flare into a leaking pipe, triggering a fiery explosion that engulfs the creature. As Willie burns, he raises his white-gloved hands in a haunting farewell, reminiscent of a cartoon character's final bow.

Amber and Rory escape in a lifeboat, drifting away from the burning ferry into the cold night. Beneath the waves, the charred remains of Steamboat Willie shudder, his melted mask slowly rising toward the surface, hinting that the terror is not yet over.

The film opens with two shipyard workers who hear skittering noises; one is brutally killed, and the other falls into a hole, screaming as a small figure appears. This prologue sets the tone for the ferry's doomed voyage. The bachelorette party's drunken antics and loud behavior irritate other passengers, adding tension before the horror begins. Pete, initially a deckhand, rises to the role of captain as the crisis escalates, developing a tentative bond with Amber amid the chaos.

The film's setting is almost entirely aboard the ferry, with establishing shots of New York Harbor and Manhattan's skyline grounding the story in a realistic urban environment. The characters' costumes are color-coded, with Cindi in blue, Bella in yellow, Jazzy in turquoise, and others dressed to reflect their personalities and roles. Additional characters include a Shirtless Cowboy, a nod to the Naked Cowboy of Times Square, a Peter Pan figure, a man dressed as the Statue of Liberty, and uniformed police officers, enriching the ferry's eclectic passenger list.

Throughout the film, Steamboat Willie's attacks are brutal and inventive, involving cleavers, harpoons, anchor chains, forklifts, and steam-powered weapons. The deaths are graphic and varied, including electrocution, stabbing, crushing, and dismemberment, with victims' bodies often arranged in grotesque, cartoon-inspired displays.

The narrative explores themes of isolation, psychological breakdown, and the corruption of innocence, embodied in Willie's transformation from a pure, kind figure into a homicidal monster. Amber's struggle with her own trauma and burnout adds depth to her character, culminating in her courageous and resourceful battle against the creature.

The film concludes with a fiery inferno consuming the ferry and the survivors escaping, but the final underwater shot of Willie's remains suggests the horror may continue. The post-credits scene hints at the possibility of future installments and the introduction of other public domain characters into this dark universe.

Overall, Screamboat blends slasher horror with dark comedy and surreal cartoonish violence, delivering a relentless and bloody nightmare aboard a drifting ferry, where survival depends on confronting a twisted, murderous icon of animation history.

At the end of Screamboat (2025), the monstrous rat Steamboat Willie is seemingly killed by Selena, one of the passengers, but his supernatural nature suggests he may survive. Only three characters--Selena, Amber (an EMTA worker), and a young boy named Matteo--survive the massacre on the Staten Island Ferry. Matteo is reunited with his father, and Selena, initially wanting to leave New York, is convinced by Amber to stay. The film closes with the implication that Willie and his companion Minnie could return, leaving the survivors uncertain about their future safety.

Now, a detailed, scene-by-scene narration of the ending:

The climax unfolds aboard the last Staten Island Ferry of the night, where the passengers and crew have been relentlessly hunted by Steamboat Willie, a demonic, homicidal rat corrupted by mankind's neglect. As the chaos escalates, Selena, who has been quietly observing and slowly connecting with Pete--the deckhand turned captain--finds herself in a desperate fight for survival.

In one intense scene, Selena confronts Willie directly. Using her wits and whatever tools she can find on the ferry, she manages to wound the creature severely. The battle is brutal and bloody, with the rat's vicious attacks causing gruesome injuries to many aboard. Despite the carnage, Selena's determination shines through as she fights not just for herself but for the few remaining survivors.

Meanwhile, Amber, an EMTA worker who has been assisting passengers, and Matteo, a young boy caught in the crossfire, navigate the terror with a mix of fear and resilience. Their paths cross with Selena's as they all attempt to escape the nightmare unfolding on the ferry.

After a tense and violent struggle, Selena appears to kill Willie, delivering a blow that seemingly ends his rampage. However, the film hints at Willie's supernatural resilience, leaving open the possibility that he may not be truly dead. This ambiguity is underscored by the fact that Willie's motivation throughout the film has been to reunite with Minnie, his companion, rather than indiscriminately hunt humans.

In the aftermath, Matteo is reunited with his father, providing a moment of emotional relief amid the horror. Selena, shaken by the ordeal, initially plans to leave New York City, burdened by the trauma she has endured. Amber persuades her to stay, suggesting a bond formed through shared survival.

The film closes on a note of uneasy calm. While Willie's immediate threat seems neutralized, the presence of Minnie and the unresolved nature of Willie's fate imply that the terror could return. Selena, Amber, and Matteo survive physically but remain psychologically marked by the night's events.

Thus, the ending leaves the fate of the main characters clear: Selena, Amber, and Matteo survive; Pete's fate is not explicitly detailed in the final scenes, suggesting he may have perished during the chaos. Willie is seemingly defeated but not conclusively dead, setting the stage for potential future encounters. The story concludes with a mixture of survival, loss, and lingering menace aboard the ill-fated ferry.

Yes, the 2025 movie Screamboat does have a post-credit scene. This scene reveals additional details about the story and sets up a potential sequel. It features a shocking twist involving another monster, expanding on the lore of the murderous mouse Steamboat Willie and hinting at future threats beyond the main film's events. The post-credit scene deepens the mystery and leaves viewers with questions about what comes next in the story.

Steamboat Willie was originally pure and kind, but became corrupted and homicidal due to mankind's neglect, transforming into a murderous and mischievous mouse who terrorizes the ferry passengers.

Pete starts as a deckhand on the ferry and rapidly progresses to Captain once the killing spree begins, developing a connection with Selena amidst the chaos.

Victims suffer brutal deaths including severed arms, legs, heads, and even penises, with deaths by electrocution, stabbing, crushing, and even by forklift, showcasing graphic and spectacular kills.

Yes, the ending reveals that Steamboat Willie is not actually dead and can return for more rampages, with a post-credits scene suggesting the possibility of other public domain characters joining the story.

Selena is a passenger trying to avoid a noisy birthday party and contemplates her life while slowly falling for Pete, the deckhand-turned-Captain, as they face the deadly threat together.

The movie Screamboat (2025) is not family friendly. It contains severe violence and gore, including graphic scenes of beheadings, stabbing, biting, and dismemberment, with blood and body parts shown explicitly. There are also moderate sexual content and nudity, including topless scenes and graphic depiction of a severed penis. The film features strong profanity and alcohol use, and intense frightening scenes involving a demonic rat attacking passengers on a ferry. These elements make it unsuitable for children and sensitive viewers.

Potentially objectionable or upsetting aspects include:

• Graphic and bloody violence with explicit gore (e.g., severed body parts, impalements, biting off noses)
• Nudity and sexual content, including topless scenes and implied sexual acts interrupted by violence
• Strong language and adult themes
• Intense horror and frightening scenes involving a relentless killer rat

Because of these factors, Screamboat is intended for mature audiences and is not appropriate for children or those sensitive to graphic horror and sexual content.