Credit: Inside The MagicThe deluge of non-copyrighted Mickey Mouse content is gaining strength, and creators are taking advantage of the now-public domain character to create violent video games, gory horror films, and hypersexualized music videos.
Twitter user Jason Gallagher, whose bio describes him as “Emmy Winning Director | Head of Prod
@OldManandThree w JJ Redick | Past: The Ringer, Dan Le Batard Show, Crooked Media, Grantland, Rolling Stone, NBA Desktop” has cut the footage of the 1928 animated short Steamboat Willie to the controversial 2020 hit single “WAP” by Cardi B (featuring Megan Thee Stallion) to results that…well, kind of have to be seen and heard to be believed.
Related: New Mickey Mouse Horror Film to Terrorize Theaters Following Disney’s Character Retirement
It's 2024 which means Mickey Mouse as the iconic Steamboat Willie is officially in the public domain.
I believe this makes me the first person in the history of the world to legally reinterpret the character. Enjoy! pic.twitter.com/HMLS0zHzZp
— Jason Gallagher (@jga41agher) January 1, 2024
Gallagher’s caption reads, “It’s 2024 which means Mickey Mouse as the iconic Steamboat Willie is officially in the public domain. I believe this makes me the first person in the history of the world to legally reinterpret the character. Enjoy!” Given that the video was posted just two hours after midnight, he has a pretty good claim to, at the very least, being the first person in history to legally mash up Mickey Mouse and the most sexual hip-hop single of 2020.
For decades, Mickey Mouse has been under the very litigious ownership of the Walt Disney Company, which has been notoriously protective of its primary mascot. Most famously, the company was instrumental in pushing the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1988 (also known as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act) in order to retain control over the character for decades past when he was initially supposed to enter the public domain.
Related: Mickey Mouse Is Getting a Horror Movie, It’s Only a Matter of Time
But Disney could only delay the inevitable for so long. As of January 1, the original version of Mickey Mouse, as seen in Steamboat Willie, is now available for anyone to utilize, remix, alter, or use to accompany a song with infamously X-rated lyrics.
Most people should be careful, however, given that Disney is reportedly fully prepared to bring legal action against anyone who uses any element of the character that was added after Steamboat Willie. Currently, there is no word about Cardi B’s feelings about being part of the Disney legacy in a very strange way.
Do you think people are going overboard with Mickey Mouse now that he’s in the public domain? Tell us in the comments below!