Friendly Reminder: Steamboat Willy version of Micky Mouse, along with several others, will be entering the Public Domain in a day. :D

[batguy]

No, they are too busy fighting all their legal battles with their own staff. Mickey abuse will just be free advertising.

That was my read on the 'Winnie the Pooh' horror flick. The only motive for doing it would be the free media coverage.

IMO that's kind of playing with fire. You've pissed off Disney and drawn their attention. They have the power to make some phone calls and dictate what the entire MSM says about your movie. If your movie had some quality then you might end up regretting that.

But if the movie is total cheap garbage then you have nothing to lose. Then it might be wortwhile to pull a Winnie/Mickey IP stunt.

 

[CB2001]

View attachment 1774943

Also, a friendly reminder (thanks to the r/publicdomain at Reddit), and not just limited to the franchises Disney has purchased, either:

 

[publiusr]

I don't think they have made much money on Mickey since the 70's.

Sci-Fi, horror and Fantasy...and the bloody car-chase films make the real money... especially with superhero fatigue setting in. The 1980's introduced so much more.

If only Star Trek was public domain

 

[dascoyne]

I don't think they have made much money on Mickey since the 70's.

Sci-Fi, horror and Fantasy...and the bloody car-chase films make the real money... especially with superhero fatigue setting in. The 1980's introduced so much more.

If only Star Trek was public domain

It doesn't matter if they made money directly off of a Steamboat Willie feature. His function is a key part of the Disney corporate identity. Just look at how many modern Disney feature films open with Willie whistling a tune.

Corporate identity serves a vital function even if it doesn't directly turn a profit. Why do major car manufacturers, like Lexus and Ford, make supercars, like the Lexus LFA or Ford GT, neither of which turn a profit, and even lose money with each sale? In part it is for the R&D but mostly, they serve to boost the company image which bleeds into their entire product line.

Disney just gave up part of its identity - now both figuratively and literally.

 

[ventuoguy]

There are so many 'versions' of Mickey!! With each successive cartoon he has been drawn a bit different. A version of Mickey that looks virtually identical to 'modern' Mickey, was released in a cartoon in 1935 - that copyright will expire in 7 years. I don't doubt that the more the various iterations of Disney fall out of copyright and are seen in all sorts of bastardized ways, the less that Disney will feature Mickey as their 'mascot.'

 

[joberg]

There are so many 'versions' of Mickey!! With each successive cartoon he has been drawn a bit different. A version of Mickey that looks virtually identical to 'modern' Mickey, was released in a cartoon in 1935 - that copyright will expire in 7 years. I don't doubt that the more the various iterations of Disney fall out of copyright and are seen in all sorts of bastardized ways, the less that Disney will feature Mickey as their 'mascot.'

I just hope they'll release the 3rd book of "The Uncensored Mouse" that was pulled from the shelves and was published by "The Malibu Graphic's Eternity Comics".

 

[publiusr]

What about Mortimer Mouse?

 

[CB2001]

What about Mortimer Mouse?

According to the information I’ve been able to find, he wa introduced in 1936, so that means he’s not available for the public domain. However, Steamboat Willie came out in 1928, so, who knows.

 

[Riceball]

I don't think they have made much money on Mickey since the 70's.

Sci-Fi, horror and Fantasy...and the bloody car-chase films make the real money... especially with superhero fatigue setting in. The 1980's introduced so much more.

If only Star Trek was public domain

Disney had kid's shows featuring Mickey and friends as late as the early 2,000s, so they were making money off of Mickey well beyond the '70s. And merchandise, both inside and outside the parks with Mickey's likeness on them in various forms are still being sold.

 

[CB2001]

Some useful info.

 

[Krel]

The people who made "Mickey's Mousetrap" are going to get hammered BIG TIME. That is not Steamboat Willie, that is a modern Mickey, and they used his name.

David.

 

[CB2001]

The people who made "Mickey's Mousetrap" are going to get hammered BIG TIME. That is not Steamboat Willie, that is a modern Mickey, and they used his name.

David.

Mickey's name is in Steamboat Willy's opening credits. And, if you listen to WDPro's video I posted, as long as they post a legal disclaimer saying that it's not associated with Disney, they don't have to worry about legal recourse.

 

[batguy]

Mickey's name is in Steamboat Willy's opening credits. And, if you listen to WDPro's video I posted, as long as they post a legal disclaimer saying that it's not associated with Disney, they don't have to worry about legal recourse.

. . . in theory.

 

[CB2001]

. . . in theory.

Yes, in theory.

Besides, I don't think anyone is going to think that slasher film is an official Disney production, so, Disney shouldn't have any problems with it interfering with tarnishing their brand (they've been doing that on their own without any help so far). XD