The 5 worst uses of Mickey Mouse after the public domain

After 95 years under US copyright protection, our beloved Mickey Mouse has entered the public domain. Well, it was actually that older version of Mickey Mouse, the one that appears in 'Steamboat Willie'.

Right away, on the first day of authorized use, poor Mickey already appeared in a series of situations that, let's say, are a little outside the Disney context. Below, five of the most questionable uses of the character.

Mickey Mouse Post Public Domain

1. Mickey’s Mouse Trap

When Winnie the Pooh (AA Milne's version of the book) entered the public domain two years ago, the bear's most notorious use was in a bloody horror film, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, which surprisingly grossed more than $5 million at the box office. So it's no surprise that Mickey is also getting his own live-action horror adaptation, Mouse Trap. Mouse Trap is set to be a psychological horror film that will explore the dark and disturbing side of the iconic Disney character. With a more adult and sinister approach, the production promises to bring a new perspective on the famous mouse. Horror and Disney fans will certainly have a lot to look forward to from this scary new project.

The film's synopsis is:

It's Alex's 21st birthday, but she's stuck at an arcade working late, so her friends decide to surprise her. However, a masked killer dressed as Mickey Mouse decides to play his own deadly game with them, which Alex must survive.

There is no release date announced yet, but Mouse Trap already has a trailer available, which you can check out above.

2. The Infestation 88 game

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of Mickey appearances in video games. According to this fan page, the mouse stars in at least 60 games and appears as a non-playable character in another 14. We bet that Infestation 88 Origins, from the developer Nightmare Forge Games, is the first in which Mickey Mouse is portrayed as a bloodthirsty antagonist. According to the company, Infestation 88 is:

A co-op horror where you are a terminator dealing with sinister infestations caused by twisted versions of classic characters and urban legends.

The studio has released a brief teaser for the game, which is available to add to your wishlist on Steam and scheduled for release sometime in 2024.

3. Steamboat Willie NFT

Seeing cartoons' most famous mouse killing teenagers and eating people alive may seem sinister, but the most tasteless exploitation of Mickey we've seen so far is a collection of Steamboat Willie NFTs in the public domain, which went live at 12 p.m. EST on January 1st.

That someone is trying to sell 2,000 copies of the same static image that can be freely copied and pasted by anyone isn't all that surprising. The shocking thing is that over 700 of these tokens have already been purchased, some for over 0.449 ETH, or approximately USD $1,000.

4. Mickey is Public Now

There are certainly plenty of adults-only uses of Mickey and Minnie — she also debuted in Steamboat Willie — but I'm avoiding those corners of the internet as much as I can. That said, there is a lot of PG13 Mickey content available on YouTube, and ThatOneGuy's Mickey is Public Now animation features a more adult Mickey that appears to be a lot more party fun than the 1928 version.

5. Steamboat Willie (2024)

This one is too good. And it's much more chilling than the horror pilots released so far. In this reimagining of the original Disney short, a live-action Mickey whistles as he rides on a real steamboat.”