The 2001 cult indie film featuring a child named Donnie and a creepy rabbit named Frank is Donnie Darko. Written and directed by Richard Kelly, the film follows troubled teenager Donnie Darko, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, in a strange story involving time, fate, and alternate realities.
Donnie encounters Frank, a mysterious figure in a frightening rabbit costume, who tells him that the world will end in 28 days. Soon afterward, a jet engine crashes into Donnie’s bedroom, even though investigators cannot explain where it came from. The film’s eerie imagery and deliberately puzzling mythology helped it develop a devoted cult following.
Donnie Darko was Kelly’s feature-directing debut and was produced by Flower Films, the company founded by Drew Barrymore, who also appears in the movie. It premiered at Sundance in January 2001. Its initial theatrical release was modest, partly because its marketing featured an aircraft accident shortly after the September 11 attacks, but home-video releases greatly expanded its audience.