When beloved characters go bad

When readers were introduced to Winnie-the-Pooh in 1926, you’d struggle to find a more pure, innocent literary character. But in the years since we first met the cuddly creature, something changed, and that change has allowed Pooh to be portrayed in a new film as… a bloodthirsty serial killer!? Yes, you read that correctly -- the beloved bear has swapped his love of honey for a love of blood. How could this happen?!

On this episode of Stroke of Genius, host Raha Francis is joined by Christine Xiao, an Associate at Womble Bond Dickinson LLP, to discuss what happens when copyright protection ends for famous pop culture characters. Pooh, for example, entered the public domain in January of 2022, creating the opportunity for the character to be used in derivative works by other creators. Christine and Raha also tackle the important distinctions between copyrights and trademarks, and touch on which other famous characters could soon find themselves in the same situation as Winnie-the-Pooh. 

To learn more about Christine Xiao you can visit her profile at Womble Bond Dickinson LLP, or follow the link to read her article about Winnie-the-Pooh in IP Watchdog. The Texas Standard also has a fascinating piece about What expiring copyright protections mean for our media landscape.  

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