The earliest version of the Mickey Mouse character that launched the Disney empire became free in the public domain on Jan. 1, 2024, after almost 100 years of being protected by copyright. Soon after, horror film producers quickly released a trailer for an upcoming slasher film entitled “Mickey’s Mouse Trap,” featuring a menacing mouse resembling the lovable character. 

Public domain means that the claim on the content was allowed to become void, making it free to use for all without permission or compensation. Most of the time creative works are under protection for the life of the creator plus several decades and for this cartoon that time had come.

During its time, Steamboat Willie was widely considered a revolutionary short film. Released in 1924, it introduced an early adaptation of the widely loved character Mickey Mouse. Notably, it was also the first animated film synched with sound to gain mass popularity, thus making non-sound-synched cartoons quickly become obsolete. 

Steamboat Willie has been associated with family-friendly, joyful, innocent movies for years. However, with the end of the copyright also came the end of Mickey’s childlike innocence. That Mickey Mouse from Steamboat Willie is adapted into a horror movie has angered many fans who don’t want to see their childhood characters used in such violent and dark films.

This is not the first time that a beloved childhood character has quickly entered the realm of horror films the moment its copyright ended. Last year, Winnie the Pooh was used in a slasher film as the copyright for the character ended and it entered the public domain. 

The Walt Disney Corporation had tried to fight the expiration of the Steamboat Willie patent for years. Regardless of their efforts, as of Jan. 1, 2024, the patent no longer protects the Steamboat Willie Mickey character. 

In addition to the trailer for the horror flick, a video game from Nightmare Forge has also been announced. The video game “Infestation 88” was also announced in a trailer released on Monday. In addition, Director Steven LaMorte has announced that he will begin work on a horror-comedy movie based on the Steamboat Willie character in which a sadistic mouse will torment ferry passengers. 

Mickey has entered the free domain, but that does not mean anyone can use anything, Mickey Mouse. The only piece that this applies to is the earliest version of Mickey and Minnie Mouse from the cartoon “Steamboat Willie.” This version was in black and white and missing numerous other iconic Mickey characteristics. The restrictions of what these characters can and can’t be used for remains ambigious. For instance, the color pallets could be protected under copyright, but that is not explicitly disclosed. Experts advise that companies and artists steer clear to avoid legal trouble with Disney’s expansive legal team. 

In coming years, more media enters the public domain as companies will continue to utilize these copyright-free characters.