Disney's earliest Mickey and Minnie Mouse can now be used by anyone as copyright expires
The earliest versions of Mickey and Minnie Mouse are now public domain.
Disney's copyright claim on the designs of the two characters has now expired, leaving them available to be reworked and used starting Jan. 1, 2024.
The versions of everyone's favorite mice duo come from the 1928 short film Steamboat Willie, which is considered to be the debut of both Mickey and Minnie. Unlike their current appearances, the 1928 version has them in black and white colors, but it still features Mickey's recognizable shorts and Minnie's dress.
Mickey’s gloves and oversized shoes are also not yet present in the design, and his eyes are small black ovals without pupils.
US law allows a copyright to be held for 95 years. Interestingly, this law is also called the "Mickey Mouse Protection Act" as Disney had been the one to push the copyright period to be extended from 75 to 95 years, just as the cartoon icon's copyright was set to expire in 2003.
As Mickey and Minnie's early versions are now in the public domain, creatives such as cartoonists can now use the designs without permission or cost.
For instance, when the character Winnie the Pooh entered the public domain in 2022, director Rhys Frake-Waterfield transformed him into a horror version that looks more monstrous and sinister for the film Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey.
Be warned, however, that Mickey and Minnie's earliest designs are the only versions that you can use as the more modern ones are still covered by Disney's copyright.
"We will, of course, continue to protect our rights in the more modern versions of Mickey Mouse and other works that remain subject to copyright, and we will work to safeguard against consumer confusion caused by unauthorized uses of Mickey and our other iconic characters," a spokesperson for the company told CNN.
"More modern versions of Mickey will remain unaffected by the expiration of the Steamboat Willie copyright, and Mickey will continue to play a leading role as a global ambassador for the Walt Disney Company in our storytelling, theme park attractions, and merchandise," they added.
The early versions of Mickey and Minnie are just two of the works entering the public domain in the US on New Year's Day.
Other iconic characters that creatives can now freely use include Charlie Chaplin's silent romantic comedy The Circus and Author AA Milne's book The House at Pooh Corner, which introduced the character Tigger.
