John Oliver has taunted Disney by announcing Mickey Mouse as Last Week Tonight’s new mascot.
The comedian made the move as the character’s copyright, which he called “a closely guarded corporate treasure”, will soon become public property for the first time in 95 years.
In the past, when Disney was about to lose the copyright, it passed a bill that saw it extend its hold over the recognisable Steamboat Willie logo, showing Mickey Mouse at the ship’s wheel.
“It does feel like a tactical legal move,” Oliver said, adding: “Basically, they may argue that this early Mickey’s image is so closely associated with their company that people automatically assume that any image of him was produced or authorised by them and still take legal action.
“The fact is anyone wanting to use the Steamboat Willie Mickey Mouse will probably still be taking a risk.”
However, Oliver, undeterred from his plan, said: “But if you know anything about this show by now, we do like to take a risk every now and then.”
The comedian then introduced a black-and-white Mickey Mouse as “a brand new character for the show”, revealing that the character had been appearing in the opening credits of the show all season long.
“We are staking our claim to Mickey Mouse right now and, I know Disney’s lawyers might argue that this Mickey is closely associated with their brand, although they should know that he’s pretty associated with our brand now too.”
He said that he was sure “Disney has some other legal arguments up their sleeve” about the usage of the character, who will become public property in 2024, but said he will only discover what they are “if and when” Disney sue him.
The Independent has contacted Disney for comment.
