Watership Down Under: When rabbits came to Australia

In the British animated film Watership Down (Rosen, 1978) rabbits are portrayed favourably and serve as direct metaphors for human society. In Australia, however, rabbits have frequently generated more complicated representations as a result of their equally complicated status in Australian culture. In light of this difference, this chapter considers the contrasting attitudes towards rabbits in Australian and British culture; contextualizes Watership Down among the depiction of both rabbits and native animals in Australian animation; and subsequently directs special attention to Watership Down’s promotion and reception ‘down under’. To consider Watership Down from an Australian perspective reveals surprising links between the film and the Australian animation industry, despite the film’s British roots.