To use his own words, John Oliver just kicked his efforts to bait Disney into suing him “up a f**king notch.” The Last Week Tonight host stopped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Monday night where Oliver very noticeably brought along a special guest: Mickey Mouse.
More specifically, Oliver brought along a costumed version of Mickey in Steamboat Willie, which has recently entered the public domain and become an obsession for the HBO host.
“It’s not Mickey Mouse,” Oliver told Colbert before noting that this is technically Steamboat Willie Mickey. “I can’t stress that enough. Luckily there’s no resemblance so there shouldn’t be confusion.”
For background, ever since Last Week Tonight returned last month, Oliver has been flat-out daring Disney to sue him over the public domain character. He’s literally been using Steamboat Mickey to promote his show with the caption, “What are they gonna do, sue?”
We’re back February 18th, and we’re pretty sure this was an okay way to let you know about it!! Ya, probably fine. pic.twitter.com/rcF5KweIZi
— Last Week Tonight (@LastWeekTonight) January 24, 2024
However, Colbert understandably had some concerns that he just got roped into Oliver’s scheme.
“Wouldn’t it be more fun to be in a courtroom together?” Oliver said via The Wrap. “It’ll probably be fine, they’ve got a good sense of humor over there,” he added about the notoriously litigious Disney.
As for why Oliver isn’t scared about facing off against one of the largest entertainment companies on the planet, the Last Week Tonight host revealed that he basically believe’s he’s a courtroom Superman now.
“We have been sued once and we won it once, therefore I take from that that I’m legally indestructible,” a confident Oliver told Colbert.
(Via The Wrap)