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Rumpelstiltskin (1987): The Real Cannon Movie Tales Film

By The Rumpelstiltskin.dance team. Updated October 9, 2026.

Rumpelstiltskin (1987) is a live-action musical fairy-tale film from the Cannon Group, directed by David Irving, with Billy Barty as Rumpelstiltskin and Amy Irving as Katie, the miller's daughter. It was the first film in the Cannon Movie Tales series released in the United States. It is a real movie, but the viral AI clip of the tiptoeing imp is not from it.

Quick facts

Cast

The film was a family project. Director David Irving is Amy Irving's brother. Priscilla Pointer and Robert Symonds, who play the queen and the miller, are their mother and father.

Billy Barty (1924 to 2000) was an American actor and activist. He was 3 feet 9 inches tall and founded Little People of America in 1957. Wikipedia notes that Rumpelstiltskin was his only lead role in a film.

Amy Irving was already a known actress, with films such as Carrie (1976) and Yentl (1983). In Rumpelstiltskin she also sings.

Plot

The film follows the Grimm tale quite closely, with a few changes and added songs. Here is the basic story, based on published summaries:

1. Victor, a poor miller, boasts that his daughter Katie can spin straw into gold.
2. The greedy King Mezzer hears this. He demands gold to cover the miller's unpaid taxes and locks Katie up with straw and a spinning wheel.
3. A strange little man appears. He spins the straw into gold in exchange for her necklace.
4. The king keeps asking for more gold. In the end, Katie has nothing left and promises the little man her firstborn child.
5. Katie marries Prince Henry. When her baby is born, the little man comes back for the child.
6. He gives her three days to guess his name. If she guesses right, she can keep the baby.

The ending stays near the Grimm version. The review site Moria describes it as "reasonably faithful", with Rumpelstiltskin stamping the ground and being swallowed up. Nobody turns into a prince after a kiss. That scene exists only in the 2026 AI clip.

For the classic version of the plot and its different endings, read the original Rumpelstiltskin story.

Songs and music

The film is a musical. The music is credited to Max Robert. Amy Irving sings several songs as Katie. Reviews mention a song in which Katie sings about her wish to become queen, and a song and dance number in which the king sings about how greedy he is.

We could not verify a full, reliable track list with song titles, so we do not list one here. The song people now link to Rumpelstiltskin, "Tip Toe Wing In My Jawwdinz", is not in this film at all. It is a 2014 rap song by Riff Raff. Read more on our tip toe song page.

Release and reviews

Cannon first planned the film for November 1986. It opened in the United States in April 1987. In May 1987, Cannon showed it as the opening film of its "family film festival" at Cannes.

Reviews were not kind. Wikipedia quotes Richard Harrington of The Washington Post, who wrote that "all Cannon has done...is to make a short story long. And long and longer." Leonard Maltin's movie guide gave it two stars out of four and called it a "threadbare musical adaptation". The review site Moria also gave it two stars, but praised its atmospheric lighting.

The Cannon Movie Tales series

Cannon Movie Tales was a 1980s series of live-action fairy-tale films from producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. Wikipedia describes it as a plan to adapt sixteen fairy tales. Rumpelstiltskin was the first one released in the United States. David Irving also directed two other films in the series, Sleeping Beauty and The Emperor's New Clothes. Another entry was Beauty and the Beast.

Where to watch Rumpelstiltskin (1987)

MGM released the film on DVD in 2005. It also appears on some digital stores and streaming services, but this changes often and depends on your country. The easiest way to check is to search for "Rumpelstiltskin 1987" in your usual streaming app or on a streaming guide site. Make sure you pick the 1987 version with Billy Barty and Amy Irving, because there are several films with the same title.

How the 1987 film links to the AI meme

In late September 2026, an AI clip of a creepy imp tiptoeing in a barn went viral with Riff Raff's song. The clip had a 1980s film look. Many people searched for "Rumpelstiltskin 1987" because they thought it was a scene from this movie. NBC News reported that it took days for people to realize the clip was AI.

The confusion is easy to understand. The real film is from the right decade, has a similar fairy-tale style, and is not widely known today. But the imp in the meme is not Billy Barty, and the scene is not in the film. Get the full answer on is the Rumpelstiltskin 1987 clip real or AI, and the meme's full story on the Rumpelstiltskin meme explained.

Star in your own version

You cannot step into the 1987 film, but you can step into the meme. Our maker can swap you, a friend or your pet into the original AI barn clip, or make a new Rumpelstiltskin dance video from one photo. It is a one-time payment per video, with no subscription. Make your own Rumpelstiltskin video.

More about Rumpelstiltskin

• The Rumpelstiltskin meme explainedWhere the creepy tiptoeing imp came from, how it went viral, and why people thought it was real.
• Is the 1987 Rumpelstiltskin clip real?The short answer is no. Here is the proof, and how to spot AI clips that look like old films.
• How to make the videoOne photo, one choice, one payment. A step-by-step guide to making your own tiptoe video and adding the song on TikTok, Reels or CapCut.
• The tip toe song behind the memeRiff Raff's 2014 track, what the title means, and how to add it to your video.
• The Rumpelstiltskin storyThe Grimm fairy tale in plain words: straw into gold, a promised child, a secret name and three different endings.
• Who is Rumpelstiltskin?The little imp from the Grimm tale: what he is, how to spell and say his name, what it means and who has played him.