Pretty sure the Barrie family still owns the rights to Peter Pan. They wanted to use him on Once Upon a Time but there are rights issues to work out first.

By the way, Mickey Mouse and Superman will NEVER be public domain. Congress will keep pushing back the copyright dates over and over as long as Disney tells them to.

Superheroes and porn is a different story though... you can always make a parody of anything regardless of copyright... it just simply has to be parody. That's how the adult industry gets away with it and films like 'Epic Movie'...

J.M. Barrie had no children of his own. He was also a divorced man. Hence the whole idea behind the Lost Kids and whatnot. With respect to the Peter Pan copyrights, he gave those away (in life) to the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children. Barrie was a good man.

Anyways... I don't know all the details regarding Once Upon a Time. But I know that in England, Peter Pan entered the public domain in 2007. Here in the United States things are a bit different on account that the book was first published in 1911, but the Theater Play wasn't shown until 1928.

So if the Great Ormond Street Hospital was able to block Peter from being on TV, it's probably because the Copyright to the Play is still active. So they probably still have some rights to the character... at least until 2028.


Don't know much about the Mickey Mouse situation, but as far as Superman goes... it no longer matters. The Siegel's already own their half, and the Shusters will get theirs in 2013. All that has already been decided in court; so any Copyright extensions would benefit the Siegel/Shuster families (and not DC/Warner).

Now, here's something you guys might not be aware of... DC Comics still owns the Superman Trademark. And they can own it (if they are smart) forever. So once Superman enters the Public Domain, those who wish to use the character will find themselves in the same situation DC Comics finds itself with regards to Captain Marvel. That is, they'll be able to call their character Superman; but they won't be able to include Superman's name as part of the Comics/Movies/Action Figure's Logos and Titles.

The problem is, Superman is more than his name and original costume. He's the culmination of his experiences. Any version someone else will do will be watered down or only half recognizable.
Even worse, writing stories as pieces of his DC heritage become available as copyrights continue to die out. Dictating what they're writing.