The calendars turning over to 2024 brought with it not only a new year, but it marked the end of Disney's hold on Mickey Mouse as the company's mascot entered the public domain. It appears the future holds the same fate for DC as a new update has emerged about the public domain status of a handful of the comic giant's iconic, foundational characters.

DC Comics' hold on its founding trinity of heroes – Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman – is set to begin expiring in 2034 when Superman and Lois Lane enter public domain, according to Variety. Batman follows closely after in 2035, then his archenemy The Joker in 2036, and finally Wonder Woman in 2037.

The characters will enter the public domain just under a century from their respective comic book debuts in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

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Much like Mickey Mouse and Winnie the Pooh, the belief is that the proverbial floodgates will open all across the entertainment industry when these DC characters enter public domain. This would range from other comics to films, books, TV shows, and more without any need to directly involve DC Comics in their production.

“There’s going to be 100 of them,” comic book author and expert Chris Sims told Variety. “They’re going to have them ready to go.”

Sims pointed out the caveat is that the expiring rights are only for the characters, specifically, and nothing else related to said characters. An example he provided was seeing a Batman movie franchise that didn't feature Robin or any other villains, as they are not beholden to the same expiring copyright as Batman.

Despite this looming over the characters, DC has worked to ensure that the threat of entering public domain doesn't impact the characters' or DC, itself, too strongly. Steps have included quality control of comics, regularly refreshing the characters, and the use of trademarks to protect certain aspects of the characters.