Maybe I’m in the super minority…but I don’t like this. With Disney having lost one of the biggest public domain copyright lawsuits in the history of the domain, the very first iteration of Mickey Mouse, Steamboat Mickey, has entered the hands of the general public.
This isn’t going to result in anything good or worth the name of Mickey Mouse.
Despite being the most famous character of the most famous and powerful entertainment brand in the history of Hollywood, Mickey Mouse has entered into the public domain under his first iteration of “Steamboat Willie” and is now open to the copyright disrespect that shall come with this decision. And, as you could probably tell, I REALLY dislike seeing Mickey being sacrificed up like this.
Okay, I just want to make something SUPER CLEAR before I continue: I’m NOT AGAINST public domain or fair use. In fact, I’m very much in favor of it.
I think it’s perfectly fine for people to sparingly use images, clips, videos, etc. of famous movie characters, TV show scenes, huge sports moments, etc. in their works of critique, commentary, education, parody, and unpaid, unmonetizable fan creations. You know, how the entire entity of media (whether it be classic, cable, or social media) works. But this story is something ENTIRELY different!
For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, Disney and a group of the most powerful cable stations, sports leagues, and entertainment brands in Hollywood failed to delay the release of copyright protections on their famous characters, broadcasts, movies, shows, etc. from falling into the gaping hole that is public domain.
And, as you can guess by my title, January 1st, 2024 was the day that the cartoon “Steamboat Willie”, the first official iteration of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse under their famous names, directed by the legendary Walt Disney himself all the way back in 1928, fell into the hands of public domain. And, as you also could have expected, there has already been an extremely cheap, pathetic-looking slasher movie trailer released staring the one and only Steamboat Mickey.
Now, I know a lot of people online are rejoicing over the fact that Disney is finally tasting a little bit of their own medicine as so many of their own famous characters and films, such as Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Winnie the Pooh, etc., were inspirations from the Victorian and Enlightenment original fairytales that were already in the public domain.
Isn’t it only fair that Steamboat Mickey and Disney are given the same treatment?
Well, I’d say…NO!
I know I sound like an extreme Disney apologist, but I just don’t think it’s right for a company to see their most beloved character and longest-in use character be put through the disrespectful ringer that is the public domain.
As we saw with Winnie the Pooh, who went into the public domain two years ago, a bunch of cheap, distaste, and just downright disrespectful horror films, gore films, and essentially films one step removed from being pornos featured this beloved character front and center and just took a massive disrespect shit in his face.
But…I actually supported the Winnie the Pooh releasement as the original author, A.A. Milne (1882-1956), and publishers of the first Winnie the Pooh tale, the British weekly magazine Punch (1841-2002), are both dead and out of commission. A.A. Milne died peacefully in his home nearly 70 years ago on January 31st, 1956, while Punch published its final magazine in May of 2002.
There’s no one who can claim infringement or original ownership over the IP against that crap Winnie the Pooh horror film or its release into the public domain.
But that’s not the case with Steamboat Willie.
(Walt Disney Animated Studios-Steamboat Willie-Steamboat Willie Clip)
Sure, Walt Disney is dead and has been since 1966, but The Walt Disney Company is still the same company that the legendary Walt Disney founded back in 1923, while Mickey Mouse, a creation of Walt Disney and The Walt Disney Company by extension, is still very much in-use and widely marketed, showcased, advertised, etc. by the company.
It seems morally and ethically wrong to strip a company of its prized creation just because it has been in use for 100 or so years and has been popular during all those years with the multitudes of generations while the company (or author if Walt was alive) is still alive and kicking. MICKEY MOUSE BELONGS TO DISNEY, NOT SOME JACKASS HORROR DIRECTOR!
In my personal opinion, public domain should only be used for films, shows, movies, characters, novels, sports broadcasts and leagues, etc. that have dead creators and the company of their creation (if they even had one) is no longer in existence to claim copyright over. You know, like what happened to Winnie the Pooh.
Anything aside from that really does feel like intellectual theft legalized through some backwards law trying to inspire others to COPY someone else’s work for creativity. How is that fair or legal?
Maybe I care more for the symbolism of Mickey Mouse and the legacy of the old Disney brand more than some judge and a bunch of crappy, hack horror directors, but I just don’t understand how a company can lose the copyright protections of ONE OF THEIR OWN PRODUCTS just because time has gone by.
No one else created Mickey Mouse aside from Walt Disney and The Walt Disney Company by extension, and it should stay that way.
Images Source: Featured Image: (Walt Disney Animated Studios) (Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Steamboat Willie (youtube.com))
In Text Image 1: (Walt Disney Animated Studios) (Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Steamboat Willie (youtube.com))
