Here are the significant books, films and characters joining the list of works in the public domain on Jan. 1, 2026.

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— / I took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference.” For years, those iconic lines of verse in Robert Frost’s “Stopping by the Woods on a ...

In 2025, a mountain of work dated to between 1924 to 1929 will enter the US public domain, including some well-known and beloved songs that are still regularly performed today. Thousands of ...

A new year means a new start, and for some pieces of media, it means entering the public domain. In 2024, one of the most famous additions to the public domain was the first iteration of Mickey Mouse, ...

Jan. 1 marks the dawn of a new era for Popeye and Tintin. It's the day the nonagenarian cartoon characters officially enter the U.S. public domain along with a treasure trove of other iconic works.

Some of the properties headed into the public domain on Jan. 1 include the first Marx Brothers' film, William Faulkner's "The Sound and the Fury" and the first appearances of Popeye the Sailor Man.

Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Other notable Disney works in the public domain in 2025 are Disney’s first “Silly Symphony” short, ...