“Plane Crazy,” Disney’s first Mickey Mouse short, featured a hot-tempered Mickey humiliating and forcibly kissing his beloved Minnie Mouse.

Mickey Mouse entered the public domain in 2024. Despite a wave of subversive art and parodies, the public domain affords creators many more exciting possibilities.

Why the earliest version of Mickey Mouse is entering the public domain You can now use elements from Disney’s 1928 short films “Steamboat Willie” and “Plane Crazy” in your own work.

He first appeared in “ Plane Crazy,” a silent short film that test-screened months before “Steamboat Willie” and portrays Mickey in a less-than-flattering light.

The earliest version of Mickey Mouse is now public as “Steamboat Willie” loses copyright protections. Disney fought to extend those laws for decades.

He first appeared in “ Plane Crazy,” a silent short film that test-screened months before “Steamboat Willie” and portrays Mickey in a less-than-flattering light.