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Tag: Disney

  • Mickey Mouse, Tigger and more: Notable works entering the public domain in 2024

    Mickey Mouse, Tigger and more: Notable works entering the public domain in 2024

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    The earliest versions of Mickey and Minnie Mouse now belong to the American people. The characters as they appear in the animated short films “Steamboat Willie” and “Plane Crazy” entered the U.S. public domain Monday, along with thousands of other works from 1928.

    Legal experts at Duke University say the Walt Disney Company still retains the copyrights to later iterations of the iconic mice for the time being, as well as the trademarks, but people “are free to copy, share and build on” the 1928 depictions of the pair.

    Mickey Mouse in
    Mickey Mouse in “Steamboat Willie.” 1928.

    LMPC via Getty Images


    What is the public domain and how does it work?

    “Public Domain Day” is observed annually on the first day of the year to mark the expiration of copyrights for older works. Laws and the length of protections vary by country.

    Works published in 1928 were supposed to enter public domain in 2004, but after lobbying efforts by Disney and other copyright holders, Congress passed the 1998 Copyright Term Extension Act and added another 20 years of protections, according to Duke Law.

    When a work goes into the public domain, it can legally be shared and repurposed without permission or fees. This can result in unexpected, if not humorous, adaptations of beloved material. 

    For example, when A.A. Milne’s “Winnie-the-Pooh” became public property in 2022, a horror film followed soon after with a slasher spin on the honey-obsessed bear.

    This sort of creativity or novel take is what makes the public domain worth celebrating, Jennifer Jenkins, director of Duke’s Center for the Study of the Public Domain, said in a post on the center’s website.

    “Think of all the films, cartoons, books, plays, musicals, video games, songs, and other works based on Greek mythology, or on the works of Shakespeare,” Jenkins said. “The ability freely to reinvent these works may spur a range of creativity, from the serious to the whimsical, and in doing so allow the original artists’ legacies to endure.”

    What other works are now free for public use?

    Tigger has joined his pal Pooh Bear in the land of public domain. The character first appeared in “The House at Pooh Corner,” whose copyright expired Monday.

    Other notable works now in the public domain include J. M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan” play, the Hercule Poirot novel “The Mystery of the Blue Train” by Agatha Christie, and the silent film “The Circus” starring and directed by Charlie Chaplin.

    Also going in is the D.H Lawrence novel “Lady Chatterley’s Lover,” and the Virginia Woolf novel “Orlando: A Biography.”

    The music and lyrics to Cole Porter’s “Let’s Do It, Let’s Fall in Love” are also now public property.

    The University of Pennsylvania maintains a digital catalog of U.S. copyright entries to verify if material is available for public use.

    What major works will lose copyright protection in 2025?

    Fans of Popeye the Sailor Man will have to wait another year for the opportunity to freely remix the spinach-eating seafarer.

    Also going public in 2025 are René Magritte’s painting “The Treachery of Images,” the first Marx Brothers film, and the first English translation of Erich Maria Remarque’s “All Quiet on the Western Front.”

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  • Mickey Mouse is now in the public domain. Well, sort of.

    Mickey Mouse is now in the public domain. Well, sort of.

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    The copyright on Mickey Mouse expires today, meaning The Walt Disney Company no longer has the exclusive rights to the character. Does this mean you can put Mickey in your own cartoon? Not exactly.

    Under current law, works released between 1924 and 1978 are copyrighted for 95 years. As a result, the thousands of works copyrighted in 1928 enter the public domain today, meaning anyone can use or reprint them without permission. That includes books like D. H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover and films like Charlie Chaplin’s The Circus. But the most high-profile addition is Steamboat Willie, the animated short that marked the debuts of both Mickey and his longtime paramour, Minnie.

    The cartoon depicted Mickey Mouse working aboard a steamboat, making music, and vexing the boat’s captain, a large cat named Pete. The slapstick humor, anthropomorphized animals, and objects of later Disney works are present, although Mickey is much more mischievous—the antagonistic dynamic with a giant cat is more reminiscent of Tom & Jerry cartoons than the Mickey Mouse familiar to modern audiences.

    The seven-minute film was revolutionary: It was the first cartoon to feature synchronized sound—rather than just a silent film with background music—and audiences loved it. Mickey Mouse spawned a franchise that over the following century would earn more than $80 billion and make Disney one of the most powerful media companies on the planet.

    Losing out on its rodential cash cow would be a huge blow, and Disney jealously guarded its creation. When Steamboat Willie premiered in November 1928, U.S. law dictated that it would enter the public domain no later than 1984. But two different laws, one passed in 1976 and another in 1998, extended the maximum copyright term, each by twenty years. Each law passed after strenuous lobbying by Disney: The latter statute, the Copyright Term Extension Act, has been derisively referred to as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act.

    Today’s expiration implies that Disney was either unable to secure another extension or unwilling to try. In recent years, Republican lawmakers have signaled their unwillingness to extend copyright law any further on Disney’s behalf. Sen. Josh Hawley (R–Mo.) even introduced the Copyright Clause Restoration Act of 2022, which would cap copyright terms at a maximum of 56 years—notably, the same term in effect when Walt Disney first released Steamboat Willie.

    But this doesn’t mean that Mickey is completely free. The copyright that expires today only applies to Mickey Mouse as he first appeared: rat-like and mischievous, with pupil-less eyes and no gloves. All other interpretations, introduced later—including the magnanimous Mickey who greets visitors to Disney theme parks dressed in a bow tie and tails, with white gloves and human-like eyes and facial features—remain under lock and key.

    “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,” a Disney spokesperson told the Associated Press in a statement.

    And while Mickey may lose copyright status, he will remain Disney’s exclusive trademark. According to Jennifer Jenkins, director of Duke University’s Center for the Study of the Public Domain, any new use of Mickey must ensure that it is unlikely to be mistaken for a Disney product. “There might be a risk of confusion if you use Mickey as a brand identifier on the kind of merchandise Disney sells,” Jenkins writes. “Consumers may also be confused if Mickey is used in an artistic work in a way that suggests it is a Disney production, for example by appearing as a logo at the beginning of an animation.”

    On January 1, 2022, A.A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh entered the public domain, bringing the characters with it. The following day, wireless company Mint Mobile released a commercial in which actor Ryan Reynolds reads a version of the story. That May, British director Rhys Frake-Waterfield released stills from his film Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, a horror flick in which Pooh and his sidekick Piglet revert to a feral state and mow down coeds after their human companion Christopher Robin leaves for college.

    Just as with Mickey, Frake-Waterfield could only use Milne’s characters as they were depicted in the original book: Pooh was first drawn in his iconic red shirt in 1932, meaning that version of Pooh is still under copyright protection. Characters introduced in later works, like the buoyant Tigger who debuted in 1928’s The House at Pooh Corner, also remained protected. (The House at Pooh Corner also falls into the public domain today, and Tigger is expected to be featured in Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2, premiering next month.)

    What does all of this mean for Mickey Mouse? What does it matter if one particular version of a cartoon character enters the public domain?

    Regardless of the artistic merit of a horror movie about Winnie-the-Pooh—and critics apparently found very little—the public domain is a boon for creative expression, allowing people to use established characters and works in new and inventive ways. Ironically, Steamboat Willie benefited significantly from the public domain. The cartoon made extensive use of the song “Turkey in the Straw,” a familiar tune with uncomfortable racist origins that dates back to the pre-Civil War era.

    And “the Mickey character itself is based on such public domain fodder,” Jenkins writes. “His personality and antics drew from silent film stars such as Charlie Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks,” as Walt Disney and animator Ub Iwerks acknowledged at the time. Even the cartoon’s title was a reference to the Buster Keaton film Steamboat Bill, Jr., released six months before Steamboat Willie. Since movie titles and personality traits are generally not copyrightable, all of this was fair game when Disney crafted Mickey Mouse.

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    Joe Lancaster

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  • 2023 Box Office: Domestic Revenue Clears $9B in Post-Pandemic First (Thanks, Barbenheimer)

    2023 Box Office: Domestic Revenue Clears $9B in Post-Pandemic First (Thanks, Barbenheimer)

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    Whew.

    Domestic box office revenue was able to clear $9 billion after all, despite a dismal fall season at the multiplex, according to Comscore. That’s the best showing of the post-pandemic era, with revenue in U.S. and Canada up 20 percent over 2022’s $7.5 billion.

    But movie ticket sales are still down sharply from pre-pandemic times, when domestic revenue crossed $10 billion every year beginning in 2009 and $11 billion every year beginning in 2015 and ending in 2019, the last year before COVID-19 struck. Comscore believes 2023 domestic revenue will come in at $9.03 billion-$9.05 billion for 2023, a drop of roughly 21 percent from 2019’s $11.4 billion.

    In terms of box office trends, 2023 will be remembered as a year of enormous change as audiences spurned tried-and-true staples, such as superhero fare — The Marvels was the biggest stumble in the history of Marvel Studios — and instead embraced originality or genres that had previously struggled.

    The marquee example of the new world order was the Barbenheimer phenomenon. The one-two-punch of filmmaker Greta Gerwig‘s Barbie and Universal‘s Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan, saw box office revenue for July and August reach pre-pandemic levels.

    “Another box office target was set and hit in 2023 as the domestic year surpassed the $9 billion threshold, owing much to a notable Barbenheimer-powered $4 billion summer movie season and a unique year in which alternative content, specialized film and international cinema made their mark in an unprecedented show of strength adding to the bottom line,” says Comscore’s Paul Dergarabedian.

    He’s referring to such films as Angel Studios’ hit indie pic Sound of Freedom, which drew much of its strength from faith-based and conservative audiences. The pic came out of nowhere to earn $184.1 million domestically, putting it at No. 10 on the list of top-grossing 2023 movies.

    Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour was another unicorn. The superstar pop singer decided to bypass the Hollywood studio system and bring her concert pic directly to cinemas via a deal with AMC Theatres. In an unimaginable feat, Eras Tour earned $179.6 million domestically to land at No. 11 on the top 20 list, ahead of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny ($174.5 million) and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 ($172.1 million).

    Barbie, from Warner Bros., was far-and-away the year’s biggest earner and the only film to cross the $600 million threshold domestically on its way to topping out at $636.2 million. It was also the No. 1 pic globally after strutting to $1.44 billion.

    The Super Mario Bros. Movie, released in the spring, was the year’s first major surprise. It earned $574.9 million domestically and $1.36 billion globally to become the top-grossing video game adaptation of all time in a huge win for Universal.

    There was more good news in store for Universal, culminating with the studio ending Disney‘s long-running winning streak and narrowly winning the domestic marketshare race with an estimated $1.94 billion in ticket sales between Jan. 1-Dec. 21, 2023, according to unofficial estimates. (Universal may also be first in global marketshare after Disney had ranked No. 1 for seven consecutive years).

    Disney’s 2023 domestic revenue was an estimated $1.9 billion, although final numbers for all of the studios won’t be revealed until Tuesday or Wednesday.

    Among other 2023 Universal titles, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer — an adult-skewing biographical drama running just over three hours — earned an eye-popping $326 million domestically and $952 million globally, while Fast X grossed $704.9 million worldwide (it was soft in North America but did well internationally).

    Back on the chart of top-grossing films domestically, Sony’s Spider-Man: Across the Universe placed No. 3 ($381.3 million), followed by Disney and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ($359 million). Disney also took spots No. 6 and No. 7. with The Little Mermaid ($298.1 million) and Avatar: The Way of Water, which, while released at the end of 2022, raked in $283.1 million in 2023.

    Lionsgate’s John Wick: Chapter 4 ranked No. 9 on the top 10 list domestically with $187.1 million in ticket sales.

    If Hollywood execs aren’t exactly setting off fireworks over 2023, it’s because they’re bracing for a tumultuous ride at the 2024 domestic box office after a slew of high-profile tentpoles were pushed to 2025 because of the lengthy writers and actors strikes.

    In a major blow to the post-pandemic recovery effort, domestic box office revenue in 2024 could come in behind that of 2023. If projections are right, domestic box office in 2024 could top out at $7.5 billion to $8 billion, say multiple studio executives who spoke with The Hollywood Reporter (a few are more bullish in thinking $8 billion to $8.5 billion is possible).

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    Pamela McClintock

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  • Mickey and Minnie Mouse set to enter the public domain on Jan. 1

    Mickey and Minnie Mouse set to enter the public domain on Jan. 1

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    Mickey and Minnie Mouse set to enter the public domain on Jan. 1 – CBS News


    Watch CBS News



    Beginning Jan. 1, the earliest iteration of Disney’s iconic duo, Mickey and Minnie Mouse — from the 1928 animated short “Steamboat Willie” — will enter the public domain. Jo Ling Kent has details about what lead up to the landmark moment.

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  • Why I'm Not Falling For Those Streaming Bundle 'Deals' — And You Shouldn't Either. | Entrepreneur

    Why I'm Not Falling For Those Streaming Bundle 'Deals' — And You Shouldn't Either. | Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Ask any movie buff, and they’ll tell you that “The Godfather Part III” was by far the worst of the mafia trilogy. But one line in that movie came to my mind when I saw this article about new “bundling” deals that are popping up from Verizon, Netflix, Disney and others: “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” That’s the way I feel about all those bundling deals.

    I shouldn’t admit this publicly because it’s so embarrassing, but my cable bill with Xfinity was about $370 per month — yes, $370! Sure, I’ve got high-speed internet and the plan with all the channels and it’s on two TVs. But come on — I’m old enough to remember the days when TV was actually free, just as long as you didn’t mind watching “Hee Haw” and repeats of “Gilligan’s Island” in the afternoons.

    Sure, there are numerous “bundling” plans offered by my cable provider. But they’re confusing, and I’ve resisted them. So, in the end, like most others, I’ve just shrugged my shoulders and avoided messing with the status quo. This is precisely what Verizon, Netflix, Disney and all the others want me to do: nothing. Instead, they want to confuse consumers like me. But enough is enough.

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    Gene Marks

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  • Showbiz Stocks 2023: Tech Surges, Big Media Companies Weather Strikes And Streaming Gets A Reboot

    Showbiz Stocks 2023: Tech Surges, Big Media Companies Weather Strikes And Streaming Gets A Reboot

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    Roku was a champ. Lionsgate surged and Netflix jumped. Tech shares went bananas in 2023. Big media stocks had a mixed year of transition dominated by Hollywood strikes with linear television declines and streaming losses.

    Paramount fell. Disney and Fox were basically flat on the year. Giants Comcast and Sony, which both have other businesses like broadband or games and music, both had nice runs. Warner Bros Discovery gained a bit. All are pushing for profitability in streaming and progress there will influence how the stocks perform in 2024.

    Relatively speaking, 2023 was a real bonanza compared with a truly dismal 2022 when only two – that’s two – media stocks rose for the year: WWE (now part of TKO Group) and Nexstar.

    It was a surprisingly good 2023 for stocks overall with the S&P 500 closing up more than 24% for the year. Investors shrugged off high interest rates and inflation, recession fears, threats of a government shutdown, a brief banking crisis and international strife, turning around a year initially expected to be rather glum for markets.

    Tech in particular brought the heat, fueled in large part by an AI frenzy. The famous FAANG group of stocks — Facebook (now Meta), Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google (now Alphabet) — has morphed into The Magnificent Seven. Newly coined this year by an analyst (from the movie), it’s Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Invidia and Tesla. This gang contributed significantly to overall gains. Shares of adjacent tech from Snap to Spotify also rallied.

    Exhibitors were split to lower amid angst at 2024’s box office prospects. Broadcast stocks fell, with advertising soft but set for a political tsunami.

    And the year year wrapped with a flourish of M&A chatter that hasn’t yet but could also buoy shares in 2024. It doesn’t hurt that the Federal Reserve indicated it may finally cut interest rates in 2024 after 11 hikes over the last two years.

    A Closer Look

    Roku was king of media in 2023, up 119%.

    Remember back in March when the company worriedly announced that it had a quarter of its cash at Silicon Valley Bank, which wiped out in the biggest bank collapse since 2008. Disaster was averted when the FDIC agreed to fully guarantee all deposits and Roku took it from there. The business is benefitting as television ad dollars shift from linear to digital, as it expands overseas and as it sells lots of branded Smart TVs. May be a potential takeover target.

    Disney, the only showbiz stock in the 30-member DJIA, nosed up slightly for the year. That’s well off its high for the year of $110 in January, when the market was flushed with enthusiasm at CEO Bob Iger’s return. But these are complicated times with linear television in steady decline, streaming still in the red and Disney facing a string of box office underachievers.

    Iger notably acquired the rest of Hulu from Comcast, paying a previously agreed upon $8.6 billion minimum. It may owe more as both sides have teams working to establish a valuation. He’s waffled a bit on entertaining offers for ABC and linear networks and is looking for a strategic partner for ESPN ahead of an eventual streaming launch. Disney is reportedly doing a deal with Reliance for its assets in India.

    Wall Streeters hope the new year will bring an update on succession planning, and perhaps on an NBA contract renewal. One analyst says he’s been getting lots of client calls on Disney recently. “They’ll say things like, ‘I used to own Disney. I just feel like it could be an interesting stock. There are so many moving parts right now, could you just get me up to speed?’”

    It looks like the company will enter 2024 facing a proxy fight with activist investor Nelson Peltz, who wants two seats on the board — for himself and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo. Peltz launched a similar adversarial campaign last year but backed off in February before a showdown at the annual meeting.

    Warner Bros Discovery is up about 10% but off its high and from the $24 it traded at when Discovery and Warner Media merged in April 2022. CEO David Zaslav is focused on boosting cash flow and paying down the company’s massive debt, which stood at $45.3 billion at the end of the September quarter. Investors did not love that quarter, spooked in particular by a glum advertising outlook.

    The ad market seems to have entered a new phase not beneficial for legacy media, which is the loss of pricing power, says one analyst. “Historically, as linear TV audiences shrunk, big companies could offset that by raising the prices they charged advertisers for the remaining viewers. In the last year, that game seems to have failed,” unless it’s sports.

    With the April 8 two-year anniversary of the Discovery-Warner Media merger, WBD can explore deals without a big tax penalty. Zaslav has had conversations with Paramount’s controlling shareholder Shari Redstone and CEO Bob Bakish about a possible deal. Warners could also be a seller but that’s hard too, in part due to its huge stable of legacy cable networks.

    Warner Bros Studio and HBO “are good businesses with solid creative trajectories, and, to us, the heart of the company,” said one analyst.

    Paramount Global, meanwhile, fell 17%. It’s financially squeezed so seen as likeliest to do a deal sooner rather than later. Conversations with Zaslav as well as with Skydance Media CEO David Ellison have touched on both an outright sale as well as the possibility of Redstone selling her interest in NAI, the family holding company that houses her Paramount stock. Regular Paramount shareholders would not be getting any premium for their shares in that scenario, maybe one reason deal talk has not moved the needle on the stock. Skydance would not face regulatory hurdles.

    Among big cap entertainment stocks, Netflix gained 63%. Studios are newly willing to license shows. It has stronger balance sheet than most of big media and a larger backlog of unreleased content of anyone but Disney, all of it dedicated to streaming. It has added an advertising tier and is seeing upside from a crackdown on password sharing.

    Smaller Lionsgate had a fantastic run, up a whopping 88% as it ended the year closing the acquisition of eOne from Hasbro and announcing plans to combine the studio with a SPAC early next year in a separation from Starz that it hopes will unlock value.

    Fox is still well liked by some analysts — no streaming losses and a focus on live sports and news. But investors like growth and some wonder about the end game. “It just is what it is,” said one. With linear television shrinking and the cost of sports rights rising, “What’s the narrative?”

    Fox is facing a $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit by a second voting machine company, Smartmatic. Earlier this year, it agreed to an $800 million settlement just before trial in a first suit brought by Dominion Voting Systems.

    In exhibition, the movie theater gig is still a tough one and the strikes disrupted production, pushing some big films back, which will slow the pace of new release in 2024. Cinema stocks ended the year mixed, with Cinemark – the No. 3 chain — showing sharp gains. The worlds’ biggest exhibitor AMC Entertainment plunged, but analysts don’t mind. It’s “finally trading roughly in line with its pre-meme historical multiple,” said one.

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    jillg366

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  • Marvel's What If Season 3 Release Window, Cast, Plot, and More

    Marvel's What If Season 3 Release Window, Cast, Plot, and More

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    Marvel’s What If…? is wrapping up its second season on Disney+, and Marvel Animation has good news for fans of its animated anthology series: season 3 is already in the works.

    According to Discussing Film, What If…? season 3 was announced in July 2022, during San Diego Comic Con. At a screening of two episodes of What If…? season 2 on December 11, 2023, the show’s creators confirmed that season 3 is currently in development.

    So what do we know about What If…? season 3? Currently, almost nothing! But there are a few tidbits of information floating around—and plenty to speculate about.

    What If…? season 3 release window

    When will What If…? season 3 come out? It’s hard to say right now, especially since Marvel has begun spacing out its Disney+ content, leading to numerous delays. However, executive producer Brad Winderbaum said at Comic-Con 2022 that the studio’s “intention is to make [What If…?] an annual release.” That means that What If…? season 3 could potentially hit Disney+ around the holiday season in 2024.

    What If…? season 3 cast

    Who could potentially be in What If…? season 3?

    Right now, without knowing which characters and storylines will be adapted for the episodes in season 3, we can only guess. It’s reasonable to suspect, though, that as Marvel moves further into phases 5 and 6, and the Infinity Saga recedes further into the past, that its newer characters will start to take center stage in What If…? That could mean less of Iron Man and Hawkeye, and more of newer characters like Shang-Chi and She-Hulk.

    Or Marvel could use What If…? as a nostalgia factory. Who knows? I wouldn’t necessarily complain!

    Either way, Marvel has a pretty good track record so far of getting its A-list stars to voice their characters in the anthology series. That means that whichever characters pop up, we may be treated to the talents of their live-action actors. Plus, Jeffrey Wright will almost certainly return as the show’s transdimensional guide, Uatu the Watcher.

    What If…? season 3 plot

    What will What If…? season 3 be about? Unless What If…? takes a radical departure in its next season, we can expect more of the freewheeling fun we experienced in seasons 1 and 2. What If…?‘s formula offers endless possibilities, as familiar characters are placed in new and interesting situations and Uatu guides us through all the possibilities of Marvel’s multiverse.

    (featured image: Disney+)

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    Julia Glassman

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  • 'Marvel's What If…?' Let's One of My Favorite Characters Be the Hero

    'Marvel's What If…?' Let's One of My Favorite Characters Be the Hero

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    This season of Marvel’s What If…? has been airing this holiday season and has been absolutely incredible this time around. Starting with Nebula joining the Nova Corps and then going to an Avengers team in the 80s, this newest episode brought us an important question: What if Happy Hogan saved Christmas?

    For me, it was a very important episode. Why? Because Happy Hogan is one of my favorite Marvel characters. No joke. Mainly because I love Jon Favreau very dearly. He is one of my favorite actors and creators on this planet and I just think he’s great. So whenever I get to see Happy Hogan having his time, I’m a very happy camper. The third episode of the second season, aptly titled “What If…Happy Hogan Saved Christmas?” takes us into Avengers Tower (a favorite era of the Marvel timeline among fans).

    Set seemingly after Iron Man 2 and The Avengers but I’m not sure where it falls after that. What we get to see though is Happy and his intern, Darcy Lewis, dealing with an issue at Avengers Tower when the rest of the Avengers are busy with holiday cheer: Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) has come to ruin Tony Stark’s holiday when Tony isn’t even there to mess with.

    Through a series of mishaps, Hulk blood, and JARVIS being down, there is only one choice: Happy has to save Avengers tower (and Christmas) to be the hero I always knew him to be. The episode is a perfect Christmas tale and one that just made me so incredibly happy to watch as not only a fan of Happy Hogan but this era of the Avengers stories too. But definitely as a Happy Hogan super stan.

    Seeing him as a hero just made me so happy.

    Happy Hogan holding his arm in an elevator in Avengers Tower
    (Disney+)

    We have seen Happy step up when he has to. Not only has Tony’s head of security and friend but with Peter Parker in movies like Far From Home and No Way Home as well. Happy Hogan can, and will, step up and be a hero if it is asked of him. The problem I have run into, as a Happy Hogan super fan, is that I have had to always take little moments with my boy.

    What I got out of “What If…Happy Hogan Saved Christmas?” was the chance to see Happy shine as the main character for one brief moment and it was glorious. Being a side character has its perks. Obviously, you don’t have the burden of the world on your shoulder all the time. But as a fan of the side characters, sometimes you just want them to have their moments too. That’s why I love shows like Marvel’s What If…? because we can see those characters in the hero position just for one fleeting moment.

    Happy Hogan will always try to do the right thing. That’s why I love him so much. He isn’t just Tony Stark’s security. Happy’s not just his friend and he’s never been just one thing. And now? Happy Hogan is part Hulk and the guy who saved Christmas from Justin Hammer.

    (featured image: Disney+)

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    Rachel Leishman

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  • Family Accidentally Buys $10K of Disney+ Gift Cards | Entrepreneur

    Family Accidentally Buys $10K of Disney+ Gift Cards | Entrepreneur

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    The most magical place on Earth during the most magical time of year was almost compromised for one family of 16 after they made a colossal error in an attempt to save money.

    In a clip that’s now been viewed over 3.4 million times, TikToker Andi Coston explained how in 2020, she and 16 of her extended family members were set to visit Walt Disney World for Christmas but had to reschedule for this year due to the pandemic.

    Trying to be financially savvy, her 78-year-old parents purchased $10,000 worth of what they thought were park-redeemable Disney gift cards to use to purchase tickets and meals to cut costs. Some retailers will reportedly sell Disney gift cards at a discounted price.

    @aofthecoast Do I have a story for you! PLEASE HELP! Note that the purchaser is not familiar with Disney Plus and did not know the difference! Honest mistake. It is not about the funding of the trip. It is about finding someone who can help us transfer the money into the correct gift card so we can make it to Disney! @Disney Parks @Disney+ @Disney #ohno #fail #disney #disneyworld #disneyplus #disneyfail #help ♬ Oh No – Kreepa

    “I went home this weekend and they were having problems loading the gift cards correctly and purchasing the tickets,” she explained.

    Related: Dad Slams Disney World After Daughters Got Stuck on Ride

    The screen then showed viewers a photo of a massive stack of gift cards with the Disney+ logo on them — gift cards that are only redeemable through and for the streaming service.

    “That’s over 70 years of Disney+,” she said. “My mom is distraught, Dad frustrated, and the kids worried we won’t get into Disney.”

    Coston then asked viewers for help figuring out a way to reallocate the funds to the proper Disney services, noting that the parks were selling out of tickets quickly because of the Christmas holiday and explaining that her family was leaving six days from the time of the video being posted on Monday.

    In a follow-up video, Coston explained that someone with Disney reached out to her family after the video went viral and was in the process of transferring the money on the Disney+ gift cards to the appropriate gift cards for the park.

    @aofthecoast

    Thank you.

    ♬ original sound – Andie.ink

    “I am glad that this is resolved. I hate that this is what it took,” she told viewers, noting that she hopes to never go viral again. “It is so frustrating to think that there are other people who have done this in smaller amounts because financially, this was not a thing for my parents, but I know that there are people out there who this would have been disastrous or would have set them back.”

    Related: Disney World Snow White Ride Closed, Dopey May Be to Blame

    Coston updated viewers on Thursday afternoon that she had, in fact, begun packing for the trip.

    A Christmas miracle indeed.

    Disney did not immediately respond to Entrepreneur‘s request for comment.

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    Emily Rella

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  • Tesla Removes Disney+ In Escalating Feud Between Musk and Iger | Entrepreneur

    Tesla Removes Disney+ In Escalating Feud Between Musk and Iger | Entrepreneur

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    Tensions appear to be escalating in the feud between Elon Musk and Disney CEO Bob Iger.

    Electric vehicle news website Electrek reports that Tesla has removed the Disney+ app from some of the vehicle’s infotainment systems. Some Tesla owners have verified this story, leaving bewildered posts on social media about Disney+’s sudden disappearance.

    “I can confirm that Disney+ has been removed from my Tesla Model S,” tweeted Whole Mars Catalog.

    “I am not feeling good about this decision. Shouldn’t it be free will, if people decide to turn away from Disney?” wrote @enriquemoreno.

    Related: Elon Musk Keeps Posting About Disney CEO Bob Iger on X, Says He ‘Should Be Fired’

    Musk vs. Iger

    If true, the move comes in response to Disney pausing its advertising on Musk’s social media platform ‘X’ after he appeared to endorse a contentious antisemitic theory online.

    A furious Musk lashed out at Disney (and CEO Bob Iger) during an interview at the New York Times‘ Dealbook Summit, saying that he would not be blackmailed by corporate money.

    “Go F$% yourself,” he said at the time.

    Now Tesla CEO Musk appears to be putting some bite behind his bark, limiting access to Disney+ for some Tesla drivers. According to Electrek, not all Tesla owners were affected by the blackout—only those who never used the app before.

    Still, the feud has left some Tesla drivers quite testy.

    For example, an X user named @teslahoe tweeted: “So Disney+ has now been removed from Tesla vehicles. I’m assuming this is in retaliation to Disney pulling advertising from X (which they have every right to do). So now I, as a mom, get to deal with telling my toddlers we can’t watch Disney+ while in our Tesla and deal with their upset feelings because 2 grown men can’t have a civil discussion and move on.”

    Related:

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    Jonathan Small

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  • Marvel Just Dropped Actor Jonathan Majors After He Was Convicted of Assault | Entrepreneur

    Marvel Just Dropped Actor Jonathan Majors After He Was Convicted of Assault | Entrepreneur

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    Marvel and The Walt Disney Company have dropped up-and-coming star Jonathan Majors from all current and future projects. The decision came just hours after a Manhattan court found Majors guilty of assaulting his former girlfriend earlier today.

    Majors’ career was poised for major stardom after appearing as villain Kang the Conquerer in “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” According to the Los Angeles Times, Marvel had slated him to play a lead role in a 2026 film, “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.”

    But now his future in Hollywood is questionable after a New York jury convicted the 34-year-old of one misdemeanor assault charge and one harassment violation. He was acquitted of a separate assault charge and aggravated harassment.

    The judge asked Majors to stand and face the jurors as the verdict was read. He showed “no immediate reaction, looking slightly downward, and declined to comment as he left the courthouse,” according to the Associated Press.

    Related: ‘That ’70s Show’ Star Convicted on Two Counts of Rape. He ‘Drugged’ His Victims.

    Assault in SUV

    The incident occurred last March when Majors was accused of attacking his then-girlfriend Grace Jabbari in a chauffeured SUV. Jabbari, a British dancer, said Majors hit her in the head, twisted her arm behind her back, and squeezed her middle finger until it fractured. Prosecutors said the confrontation left her in “excruciating” pain.

    But Majors’ attorney, Priya Chaudhry, argued that Jabbari was the aggressor in the relationship and made up the ordeal in the town car.

    The jury did not agree, and now a promising young star faces an uncertain future.

    “The evidence presented throughout this trial illustrated a cycle of psychological and emotional abuse, and escalating patterns of coercion far too common across the many intimate partner violence cases we see each and every day,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement after the verdict.

    Majors is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 6, 2024, and he faces up to a year in prison.

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    Jonathan Small

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  • Infographic: Florida’s special districts

    Infographic: Florida’s special districts

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    There are currently 1,967 special districts across Florida, according to the Florida Department of Commerce. Most aren’t like the big, quasi-autonomous districts that cover The Villages and Disney World, though. Some just cover local or county libraries, utilities, parks, or airports, among other typical government functions. Others cover the whole state under a variety of functions, like Space Florida’s function as “the single point of contact for all space-related functions of the State of Florida.” Most districts are focused on community and commercial development, though some remain undeveloped years after creation.

    Altogether, they combine in a patchwork of governmental districts that blanket the state—sometimes complicating government functions, sometimes simplifying them.
    — Jason Russell

    (Infographic by Erin Davis)

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    Erin Davis

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  • 10 Impeccable Studio Ghibli English Dubs, Including The Boy and the Heron

    10 Impeccable Studio Ghibli English Dubs, Including The Boy and the Heron

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    Image: Studio Ghibli

    In defense of English dubs, no one does it better than Studio Ghibli. It’s not a matter of either-or; with the incredible global talents that span the original Japanese voices and the English casts, it just means we get more!

    With the release of The Boy and the Heron, which features Robert Pattinson’s dedicated vocal bird transformation, we’re looking back at the best Studio Ghibli dubs. When it comes to Hayao Miyazaki’s films, care has always been taken between by the Disney and GKIDS distributors to cast the English roles with incredible talent. It’s no easy feat to perform in sync with animation, let alone in a foreign language, but it helps to have the guidance of directors such as Pixar’s Pete Docter (Howl’s Moving Castle) who approach the task with appropriate reverence. While we understand the importance of subtitles—and we’d never take away from the wonderful work of the original Japanese voice casts—dubs help make the films accessible to more audiences. And as an animation fan, I love dubs because I can bask in the art and storytelling without reading and then revisiting with subtitles. It’s a preference and a gateway for more global animation to travel the world.

    Here’s a list of the top 10 English Studio Ghibli dubs we love.

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    Sabina Graves

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  • Disney+ Hulu App Will Leapfrog Netflix On Popularity & Volume In The U.S., Says Report

    Disney+ Hulu App Will Leapfrog Netflix On Popularity & Volume In The U.S., Says Report

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    The combined Disney+ Hulu app will leapfrog Netflix on both popularity and volume in the U.S., according to a report from Ampere Analysis.

    One-third of the 100 most popular Q3 titles in their home market were on Disney+ and Hulu, Ampere found, with 17 on the former and 16 on the latter, placing the pair at the top of the popularity pile. Netflix’s figure sits a few lower at 29, with Max in third on 18 and Amazon Prime Video lagging behind on 11. Ampere measures popularity based on key metrics such as volume of interest, web traffic and box office income from major services such as Google, Wikipedia, and IMDb.

    Meanwhile in terms of volume, Disney+ and Hulu will shoot above Netflix to become the second most populous streamer with 9,578 titles, with Hulu holding the majority, 7,250. The combined app is ahead of Netflix by more than 1,000 and second only to Prime, even with the 300 titles set to be removed following Disney+’s buyout of Comcast’s Hulu stake. Given that the Disney+ Hulu app doesn’t launch for several months, these figures could change.

    Disney+ and Hulu bring together the might of the likes of the new Star Wars movies and TV series, Pixar pics and Hulu hits such as Only Murders in the Building and American Horror Story. Disney+’s content strategy relies on its strong children and family content portfolio and tentpole sci-fi releases from major franchises. These would represent 81% of the top 100 most popular titles on the combined platform, Ampere said, while Hulu’s content library would complement Disney+’s as it includes underserved Disney+ genres such as crime, romance and horror. Disney+ already features some of the Hulu library in international markets under the Star banner.

    As of October 2023, Hulu had more subscribers than Disney+ in the U.S. According to Ampere’s consumer survey, 44% of U.S. Hulu subscribers already have access to Disney+, largely due to bundles offering both platforms plus ESPN.

    “With a combined app offering Disney+ and Hulu due to launch in the U.S. in early 2024, its compelling new streaming content offer will surely shake up the status quo,” said Ampere analyst Joshua Rustage.

    “The combined Disney+ and Hulu catalogue will provide one of the most well-rounded and popular offerings in a single platform, upping the content stakes at a time when many are pulling back on content investment. Rivals will have to ensure their offerings remain competitive as the battle for viewing time intensifies, especially as the need to pull in advertising dollars is now also central to the streaming mix.”

    Earlier this week, Disney added Hulu as a sixth vertical on the home screen of Disney+ with an integrated “one-app experience” launching in beta. The apps will be combined in earnest next March. The launch scheme, initially announced last month during Disney’s quarterly earnings call, comes as Disney is in the process of buying out Comcast’s one-third stake in Hulu and becoming its full owner. It has had 100% operational control of Hulu since 2019.

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    Max Goldbart

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  • The Best Part Of The Game Awards This Year Was The Fashion

    The Best Part Of The Game Awards This Year Was The Fashion

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    Screenshot: The Game Awards

    Last year, I caused a bit of a ruckus by saying the fashion at The Game Awards was indicative of the industry’s identity crisis. I lamented the t-shirt and blazer uniform and begged the men of the industry to do better. And though I said this not long before the 2022 awards show was set to kick off, it was clear that even in those few days, gaming’s biggest names scrambled to make sure they pleased one relatively unknown woman from New York.

    Ahead of this year’s awards, I offered unsolicited fashion advice to try and ensure the awards ceremony felt as glitzy and as glamorous as host Geoff Keighley wants it to be. I even dressed a few of the attendees myself. But despite all that, I wasn’t sure what kind of looks we’d see when The Game Awards 2023 livestream kicked off on December 7.

    This year, I attended the awards in-person, and had quite a few people tell me face-to-face that I singlehandedly made the attendees step up their fashion game. There was so much style both on and off the stage at the Peacock Theater last night, with dozens of people donning sequins and sparkles and Barbie-pink gowns and bright suit sets and funky accessories and sky-high heels. It truly was a feast for the eyes. Hell, Geoff dressed so well this year that someone dropped an f-bomb on stage over it.

    So, I decided, just like last year, to gather some of the best-dressed attendees of The Game Awards 2023. Some of them were on-stage, many were off, all were fabulous. Click through to see who made the cut. You’re all beautiful.

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    Alyssa Mercante

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  • Elon Musk Says Bob Iger, the Disney CEO He Publicly Told to “Fuck Yourself,” Should Be “Fired Immediately”

    Elon Musk Says Bob Iger, the Disney CEO He Publicly Told to “Fuck Yourself,” Should Be “Fired Immediately”

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    Last month, during an interview at The New York Times’ DealBook summit, X owner Elon Musk declared that the advertisers who’d boycotted the platform in reaction to his endorsement of a wildly antisemitic post could go to hell. “Don’t advertise,” he said before going on to specifically target Disney CEO Bob Iger. “If someone is going to try to blackmail me with advertising? Blackmail me with money? Go fuck yourself. Go fuck yourself, is that clear? Hey, Bob, if you’re in the audience. That’s how I feel, don’t advertise.” A week and change later, (perhaps with the benefit of hindsight and maybe even a gentle reminder from shareholders that his job is not, in fact, to tank the company), has Musk decided to make nice with the companies upon whom X relies on revenue to survive? Not exactly!

    Instead, on Thursday morning, he declared on X that Iger should be “fired immediately” and that “Walt Disney is turning in his grave over what Bob has done to his company.”

    X content

    This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.

    In November, Disney, along with IBM, Apple and others, pulled their advertising on X after Musk wrote, “You have said the actual truth” in response to a post accusing “Jewish communities“ of “pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them.” Musk later apologized, saying, “It might be literally the worst and dumbest post I’ve ever done,” yet curiously, it remained on the site as of Friday:

    X content

    This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.

    Musk bought Twitter in October 2022, and under his tutelage the company has gone from a valuation of $44 billion to $19 billion (he also, for some reason, changed the name to X). At the DealBook conference, after telling Iger and company to “fuck yourself,” Musk said: “If the company fails because of an advertiser boycott, it will fail because of an advertiser boycott. And that will be what bankrupt the company, and that’s what everybody on earth will know…. Let the chips fall where they may.”

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    Bess Levin

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  • Costco.com: $250 Disney Gift Cards for $224.99

    Costco.com: $250 Disney Gift Cards for $224.99

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    10% Off Disney Gift Cards

    Costco has a sale on Disney gift cards:

    • $250 Disney Gift Card for $224.99
    • Limit 2 per membership.

    BUY NOW

    You can earn 5% cash back if you use a Chase Freedom or Freedom Flex credit card.

    The Disney Gift Card is good for practically all things Disney – Theme Park tickets, Resort stays, merchandise, dining and so much more – at Disney destinations nationwide! Redeem your Disney Gift Card at Disney Parks and Disney store locations in the US, at shopDisney.com and beyond! There are no fees and the card never expires. 

    Rakuten $30 bonusRakuten $30 bonus

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    DDG

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  • Tim Allen Hit With Damning Accusation Of Bad Behavior On Set By 'The Santa Clauses' Co-Star

    Tim Allen Hit With Damning Accusation Of Bad Behavior On Set By 'The Santa Clauses' Co-Star

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    Opinion

    Source: Good Morning America YouTube

    The former “Home Improvement” star Tim Allen, who has long been known as one of the only openly Christian conservative stars in Hollywood, has been hit with a damning accusation of bad behavior on the set of “The Santa Clauses by one of his co-stars.

    Allen Accused Of Bad Behavior On Set

     Casey Wilson, who only appeared in the pilot episode of the Disney+ series “The Santa Clauses,” claimed on her B**** Sesh podcast this week that Allen was “f**king rude” to her when they filmed their scene.

    “Tim Allen was such a b—h,” said Wilson, who is best known for a short sting on “Saturday Night Live” from 2008-2009. “Worst, truly single worst experience I’ve ever had with a co star ever.”

    E! Online reported that Wilson, 43,  plays an older version of the lactose intolerant character Sara, who thinks Allen’s Santa is a burglar when she catches him entering her home.

    “So I’m in a scene. It’s just me and Tim Allen and I’m supposed to throw things at him,” Wilson explained. “He’s coming down the chimney, obviously as Santa. And I am woken up thinking there’s an intruder—basically like a home invasion scene.” 

    Wilson alleged that Allen, 70, didn’t like her performance, so he walked over to a producer who was standing near her.

    “I basically hear him—he goes, ‘You gotta tell her to stop stepping on my lines,’” Wilson continued. “The producer turns to me with horror on his face and has to walk one foot to me and he goes, ‘Tim would ask that you stopped stepping on his lines.’”

    “When he was done, he was so f–king rude,” she added. “Never made eye contact, never said anything. It was so uncomfortable.”

    Related: Tim Allen Reveals What It’s Really Like To Work With His Daughter On ‘The Santa Clauses’

    Wilson Doubles Down

    Wilson also claimed that Allen has everyone “walking on eggshells” whenever he is on set, according to Fox News. She alleged that as soon as their scene was over, Allen left the set.

    “It’s the end, and Tim Allen goes, ‘Leaving!,’ takes his Santa cape, picks it up and drops it on the floor and walks out,” Wilson explained. “And they hustle in his stand-in; lovely man, who was much nicer to act against. People are scurrying to pick up his velvet Santa coat. He’s a b—-.”

    “And this is the best,” she concluded. “I will not say who said this. This was someone that I do not know, perhaps in the crew. [He or she] breezes past me and just goes, ‘You’re seeing him on a good day.’”

    At the time of this writing, Allen has yet to respond publicly to Wilson’s claims.

    After starring in three Santa Clause movies, Allen brought back the character for the Disney+ series in 2022, and season 2 of the show premiered last month.

    “As I walked on set for the first time in the full regalia, everybody got very quiet, both adults and kids,” Allen said last year. “When I show up dressed in the full suit and everything else, there’s big smiles on people’s faces. Little kids are quiet. I had totally forgotten that. It does feel like Santa’s in the room.”

    Find out more about Wilson’s claims against Allen in the video below.

    Related: Tim Allen Reveals Why He Refuses To Watch Violent ‘Ugly Santa Movies’ – ‘I Don’t Like That’

    Allen’s Conservative Views

    Allen has long been one of the only openly conservative stars in Hollywood.

    “Well I’m what they call fiscal conservative, I like problem-solving, and problem-solving usually originates for my family — there was nine kids, and my single mom for a while, and a lot of it was about ‘How are we gonna pay for this?’” he previously said in 2015, according to The Sun.

    “I’ve worked different jobs and I’ve had a colorful past and I pay a lot in taxes,” he told Entertainment Weekly in 2018. “I wish we got more for our money. Whatever political party is for more responsible use of our money—that’s all I meant.”

    Given how liberal Hollywood is these days, this has only made Allen more of a target from attacks and unproven claims by leftists. Do you buy Wilson’s allegations about Allen, or could this just be another attempt to take a conservative star down? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

    Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust.
    The Political Insider ranks #3 on Feedspot’s “100 Best Political Blogs and Websites.”

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    James Conrad

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  • Elon Musk: Disney CEO Bob Iger 'Should Be Fired Immediately' | Entrepreneur

    Elon Musk: Disney CEO Bob Iger 'Should Be Fired Immediately' | Entrepreneur

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    X owner Elon Musk had Disney CEO Bob Iger on his mind on Thursday, posting about him several times on X, notably saying that he “should be fired immediately.”

    A spate of advertisers, including Microsoft, Airbnb, Coca-Cola, IBM, and Disney, pulled or froze ads on X (or are considering it) after Musk endorsed an antisemitic conspiracy theory last month, per documents viewed by the New York Times.

    Last week, at the 2023 DealBook Summit in New York, Musk told former advertisers who had pulled money from X to “Go f–k yourself” before calling Iger out by name.

    RELATED: Elon Musk Gives Profanity-Laden Tirade During DealBook Interview

    “Hey, Bob,” he said from the stage.

    Earlier that day, Iger explained why Disney stopped advertising on X.

    “We just felt that the association with… Elon Musk and X was not necessarily a positive one for us,” Iger said at the event.

    Musk has been talking about advertiser losses for months. In August, he posted that the platform “may fail” due to less advertising revenue and increased competition.

    RELATED: Elon Musk Expresses Concern Over X’s Future, Says It ‘May Fail’ Amid Turbulent Year

    Other posts from Musk on Thursday aimed at Iger included several memes making fun of recent Disney box-office disappointments.

    The X posts started after news circulated that New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez filed a civil lawsuit on Wednesday alleging that Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, “are not safe spaces for children” and lack “effective” age verification, per CNBC.

    Musk and Zuckerberg have had a long-standing feud that, at one point, almost landed the duo in a cage fight.

    Musk spelled Iger’s name wrong in several posts.

    “Bob Eiger [sic] thinks it’s cool to advertise next to child exploitation material. Real stand-up guy,” Musk posted.

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    Entrepreneur Staff

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  • Bob Iger’s Most Genius Ideas For Fixing Disney Movies

    Bob Iger’s Most Genius Ideas For Fixing Disney Movies

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    After a string of box office flops including The Marvels and Wish, Disney CEO Bob Iger has fully committed himself to revitalizing the studio. As a creative visionary in his own right, Iger has stated he’ll improve Disney movies by doing the following.

    Read more…

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