Early Versions of Mickey and Minnie Mouse Enter the Public Domain

Facts

• As of Monday, the Walt Disney movie, 'Steamboat Willy,' has moved into the public domain — meaning the Mickey Mouse character from this feature can be creatively used in new works.¹
• With the release of 'Steamboat Willy' and a version of 'Plane Crazy,' an early iteration of Minnie Mouse also has migrated to the public domain. Among the other works now in the public domain as of Jan. 1, 2024, are JM Barrie’s 'Peter Pan,' Virginia Woolf’s 'Orlando,' and Tigger, a friend of Winnie the Pooh.²
• However, new versions of Mickey — including from the 1940 movie 'Fantasia,' and the Disney Channel 'Mickey Mouse Clubhouse' version that ran for a decade beginning in 2006 — remain under copyright.¹
• The copyright on 'Steamboat Willy' Mickey and other 1928 works and creations originally was scheduled to expire in 1984, and then again in 1998, but each time Disney lobbied to have US copyright laws changed to maintain control of that original version of Mickey.³
• Shortly after the early version of Mickey Mouse entered the public domain, a trailer for a horror film featuring the character was released online, and other internet works began featuring Mickey in various roles not typically associated with Disney's friendly character.⁴

Sources: ¹NPR Online News, ²Verge, ³The Guardian and ⁴Newsweek.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by The New York Times. Moving works like Steamboat Willy Mickey into the public domain helps feed the veins of creativity and inspiration of modern-day artists. A wide array of new ideas are already being formulated by artists and writers alike — imagining different uses for Mickey, and the other characters, songs, and stories, that can now be used in various mediums. Building off these works keeps the arts going.
• Narrative B, as provided by Forbes. Whether the arts will be advanced by these works becoming part of the public domain remains to be seen. In the past, and this situation, we've seen beloved characters used for untasteful derivative purposes that do nothing but allow creators to make a quick buck through crass internet monetization. Already Mickey is popping up in works that will do nothing but make the public miss the true intent of the original artform.

Predictions