The issue is that Disney’s army of lawyers will claim that any Snow White is based on theirs, not the original fairy tale. And they’ll be able to win it in court, purely by turning the legal fight into a battle of attrition for the defense.
Imagine I make a Mickey Mouse cartoon, based on the original Steamboat Willie character, which is in the public domain. Disney will sue me and claim it is actually based on the modern character. And now it’s up to me to prove in court that it is not infringing on their modern character. And that becomes difficult when the line between the old character and the modern one is so blurred.
The issue is that Disney’s army of lawyers will claim that any Snow White is based on theirs, not the original fairy tale. And they’ll be able to win it in court, purely by turning the legal fight into a battle of attrition for the defense.
Imagine I make a Mickey Mouse cartoon, based on the original Steamboat Willie character, which is in the public domain. Disney will sue me and claim it is actually based on the modern character. And now it’s up to me to prove in court that it is not infringing on their modern character. And that becomes difficult when the line between the old character and the modern one is so blurred.