Ryan Reynolds’ Twist on “Winnie the Pooh” is the Story of Marketing Genius

And you could use that classic, and others, too, in your marketing - now that it's on the public domain

Ariella Brown

January 11, 2022

In this article:

On January 2, 2021, several works of fiction entered the public domain, removing them from the hold of Disney and the like
Ryan Reynolds was ready to use it to promote his cellular service

Once upon a time, specifically in 1926, Winnie the Pooh was born in book form. Ninety-five years later, the work and its creations enter the public domain, which means that brands can now use them freely. Ryan Reynolds shows us how a nearly century-old bear can become relevant to a newish cell phone service.

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Many of us are familiar with Winnie the Pooh from the Disney movie and the books, toys, clothing, and bedding that featured those versions of Winnie, Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore, etc. The original books are much older, though, and that’s why they were able to enter the public domain in 2022, as per the terms of the Copyright Term Extension Act (CTEA).

This presents a marketing opportunity that Ryan Reynolds seized immediately by posting a video that showed the original bear in the character of “Winnie-the-Screwed on MintMobile YouTube channel on January 2:

Reynolds’ description encapsulated his approach this way:

“Yesterday the original book featuring Winnie-the-Pooh entered the public domain. Took some creative liberties but it sticks pretty close to the source material. Just added #MintMobile and changed ‘honey’ to ‘money’ really…”

Just two days later it had well over two million views and nearly a thousand comments that applauded the genius of such creative marketing. Other brands should take note and consider how they could apply beloved classics that are now free to use for their own marketing.

They don’t have to limit themselves to Winnie the Pooh. The original Bambi is now also in the public domain, as are works not aimed at children like Langston Hughes’s The Weary Blues, Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, and Dorothy Parker’s Enough Rope.

And, we know, we write about Mr. Reynolds a lot lately. But the approach to marketing he and his team bring is something we really think our readers can take inspiration from.