Wickedly Complicated: The Wonderful World of Copyright Wizardry – Q2 2025 Facts & Findings

In the enchanting world of Oz, the only thing more colorful than the characters is the web of legal rights surrounding them. Whether it is the original 1900 book, iconic 1939 film, hit 2003 Broadway musical, or 2024 movie, copyright law plays a crucial role in how these stories have evolved and been protected over the past 125 years.

In the last two decades, the popularity of the Wizard of Oz tale has been driven by the beloved musical Wicked and the 2024 film adaptation. If you are a pop culture and legal nerd like me, you may have wondered about the intellectual property protections for the original work and subsequent adaptations. Understanding the nuances of the copyright issues involved is a fascinating journey…perhaps one best taken down a yellow brick road?

The original concept began with the 1900 publication of the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. MGM Studios bought the rights to Baum’s book and adapted it into the classic movie musical, The Wizard of Oz, in 1939. The copyright on Baum’s book expired in 1956, and the story has been in the public domain ever since. The copyright on the 1939 movie, now owned by Warner Bros., expires in 2035. As a result, anything in the 1900 Baum book is fair game, while original material appearing in the 1939 film is still under copyright protection.

Nearly a century after the publication of Baum’s book, author Gregory Maguire published a novel titled Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. Maguire’s 1995 book builds on the concept created by Baum but tells a new story that predates the events of the 1900 book and 1939 film, creating a prequel backstory centered around the Wicked Witch and Glinda the Good Witch characters. The rights to Maguire’s book were sold and adapted into the stage musical Wicked, which debuted on Broadway in 2003 and continues to be performed worldwide. The musical was adapted into a movie, Wicked: Part I, which Universal Pictures released in November 2024.1

Copyright is a type of intellectual property that protects the original works of creators, including artists and authors. Copyright law, codified in the Copyright Act of 1976 and subsequent amendments (contained in Title 17 of the United States Code), covers many kinds of works, including books, musical compositions, movies, and plays. Under US law, copyrights do not last forever, and in most instances, a copyrighted work loses protection after a set period. It is then considered part of the public domain, making it available for free use by the public.

Proof of copyright infringement is highly circumstantial. The standard used to determine if the use of a copyrighted work constitutes infringement is whether the later work is substantially similar to the original work. This determination is a decidedly subjective exercise. Courts use several standards in evaluating substantial similarity, including filtering out the unprotected aspects of the original work, such as stock plot elements. This leaves an analysis of the protected aspects, such as the “total concept and feel, theme, characters, plot, sequence, pace and setting,” and the “ordinary person’s subjective impressions of the similarities between the works.”2 These tests have been examined thoroughly by the US Courts of Appeals for the Second and Ninth Circuits, which include New York and California, respectively, hubs of film and theater production.

Let us examine a few key elements. If you watched the 2024 Wicked movie, you might have been surprised to see the infamous slippers depicted as silver jeweled shoes rather than red. Baum’s 1900 book described the shoes Dorothy takes from the dead Wicked Witch of the East as silver. The 1939 movie was one of the first to be filmed in Technicolor, and MGM was motivated to showcase color as creatively as possible. Thus, the shoes Dorothy wore in that movie were red and became known as the Ruby Slippers.

The Wicked musical and subsequent film adaptation chose to harken back to Baum’s book by making the shoes silver. There is a brief sly reference to the Ruby Slippers during a scene in the musical in which Elphaba puts a spell on the jeweled silver shoes worn by her disabled sister in an attempt to give her the ability to walk, and the shoes burn red hot. Publicity for the musical and film frequently mentions the silver shoes as a tribute to Baum’s original vision. However, it is also a clever way to avoid any conflict with the copyrighted Ruby Slippers.

The original witch character in Baum’s book was known as the Wicked Witch of the West, and illustrations depicted her as paunchy and pigtailed, wearing an eye patch and a very tall, pointed hat. The witch character in the 1939 film introduced the green skin element and the famous cackle, “I’ll get you, my pretty.” Maguire’s characters in the Wicked book blend the public domain and copyrighted characters of the Baum and MGM works. Maguire reimagined the original witch character into Elphaba, a complex, misunderstood outcast burdened by injustice and government corruption. He similarly transformed Glinda the Good Witch into “Galinda,” a bubbly and multilayered character.

Certainly, Elphaba’s characterization is quite different from the Wicked Witch of the West in the 1900 and 1939 works. She is not depicted as an ugly hag. Her long hair, tailored dresses, and unique glasses in the Wicked film are distinguishable from the 1939 movie appearance of the Wicked Witch. The green skin identity is a pivotal aspect of the narrative in the Wicked universe, serving as the reason Elphaba is ostracized and ultimately labeled a “wicked witch” when she resists attempts to exploit her magical abilities. Maguire created this backstory entirely, so the only real resemblances between the 1939 movie Wicked Witch and Elphaba are black clothing and green skin.

No trademark is registered for the specific shade of green used on the Wicked Witch of the West’s skin in the 1939 movie. Subsequent adaptations have used different shades of green than the original film, which could be used as a defense against potential copyright infringement. While a color or shade cannot be protected by copyright, one can register a trademark that is linked to a particular brand (UPS owns trademark rights to a specific shade of brown for use on delivery trucks and worker uniforms, and Tiffany & Co. owns rights to their signature shade of blue as used in jewelry stores and packaging). The Walt Disney Company owns a patent on a color named “Go Away Green,” specifically created for use in its amusement parks to make things blend in with the landscaping.

Wicked’s visual and narrative use of green skin is sufficiently distinct from the 1939 film’s depiction, in which green skin can be considered a mere costume element. Wicked creates a new and unique interpretation and context for the Wicked Witch of the West, with her green skin serving as an integral part of Maguire’s artistic vision.

Dorothy Gale is the central character in Baum’s book, and the story is told from her perspective. While the Dorothy character is now in the public domain, the aspects created for her depiction in the 1939 movie remain protected by copyright. Baum describes Dorothy as pigtailed and dressed in a blue gingham pinafore dress. That general likeness is no longer under copyright protection. However, the design of Dorothy’s gingham pinafore costume and the specific pigtail hairstyle worn by actress Judy Garland in the 1939 movie are protected.

Maguire’s book briefly mentions her character as a 10-year-old girl with pigtails and a gingham dress. The Wicked musical does not reference Dorothy by name. She is shown only as a girl’s silhouette when water is tossed on Elphaba. The 2024 Wicked movie includes a brief aerial shot of a girl in a gingham dress walking on a yellow brick road, accompanied by a tin man, a scarecrow, and a lion. The opening narration references a “young girl” as responsible for the death of the wicked witch. Early promotional content for the movie contained glimpses of the girl, tin man, scarecrow, and lion from behind in what appeared to be the Wizard’s chamber in Oz. However, none of those scenes were in the 2024 movie. It is speculated that they will appear in the 2025 sequel. To avoid infringing on the 1939 movie’s copyright, any depiction of Dorothy must use a divergent design for her gingham dress and hairstyle.

The Wizard of Oz film, Wicked works, and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz can all be considered separate canons. Each adaptation created its own artistic vision and context of the original elements. Although all adaptations of the original book must be evaluated from an intellectual property perspective, copyright law leaves space for inspiration, creativity, and innovation based on the original work. The legal landscape of Oz is as rich and intricate as the world itself, with copyright law safeguarding the legacy of its beloved characters and stories for generations to come.

RESOURCES
1 A sequel entitled Wicked: For Good is scheduled for release in November 2025.
2 Williams v. Crichton, 84 F.3d 581, 588 (2nd Cir. 1996); Funky Films v. Time Warner Entertainment Co., 461 F.3d 1072, 1077 (9th Cir. 2006)

---

Lisa M. Stone, ACP, has been a paralegal for over 25 years. She is the Legal Operations Manager for T.D. Williamson. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science and Advanced Certified Paralegal credentials in Discovery, Contracts Administration/Contracts Management, and Business Organizations. Lisa has served on NALA’s Certifying Board since 2016, including as Chair. She is NALA’s Area 2 Director for 2024-2026. She is a member of the Oklahoma Paralegal Association and the Alabama Association of Paralegals, Inc.
email: lisastone4599@gmail.com