UPDATE: Following the publication of the below article, a third Mickey-based project (and a second horror film with title pending) has been announced by the Terrifier 2 producers and director Steven LaMorte. Will a fourth be coming as well? The floodgates might soon be opening.
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If you thought Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (and its upcoming sequel) was an aberration, think again. When infamous pieces of IP hit the public domain, the mice shall play (and freak out fourth graders), and that now includes the “Steamboat Willie” version of Mickey Mouse. That copyright expired as of 2024’s arrival, and very quickly, teaser trailers for both a horror movie and a horror-survival video game have surfaced.
You can see plenty of the first option above from a film called Mickey’s Mouse Trap, and well, at least it’s not a Thirst Trap? Into Frame Productions surely did not intend for this film to be lofty viewing fare, although it does appear to take some cues from the success of the Five Nights At Freddy’s movie because this version of Mickey is terrorizing patrons of a pizza-party parlor. Is this going to cause Sinister-esque dreams for those of us who are predisposed to watching horror movies while fueling with late-night pizza? Perhaps.
The film doesn’t necessarily look scary but more like it’s enjoying a few jabs at horror tropes and the “rules” of such films, which hasn’t been a novelty since Scream first debuted, but that’s alright because there’s a reference to that initial 1996 movie in the trailer, too. And as if that isn’t enough, there’s also a new teaser (which you can see at IGN) for a Steamboat-Willie-Mickey-based survival-horror game, Infestation 88, on the way as well. IGN also passes on the Nightmare Forge description of the game:
“In the year 1988, what was thought to be an outbreak of rodents in various locations morphed into something far more sinister.” Sometimes you’ll need to fight, sometimes you’ll need to run, and sometimes you’ll need to hide in a locker. You can set traps and utilize CCTV cameras to try and stay one step ahead of the infestation, and item layouts are randomized in order to help keep matches fresh.”
How does Disney feel about this madness? They are vowing to defend the modern iterations of Mickey. Via Deadline:
“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,” a Disney spokesperson said of the dos and don’ts of the sound-synched film entering the public domain today. “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.”
In other words, it’s now all fun and games when it comes to Steamboat Willie, but no one had better get any ideas about contemporary Mickey, who’s still doing his wholesome thing on merch and at Disney theme parks around the globe.
(Via Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter & IGN)