Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-5154975-20140830155800/@comment-24674051-20150513140702

The thing is, if Disney has done adaptations of a story before, then it is easier to deal with all the legal nonsense regarding copyrights, etc. But, as someone pointed out, Once was able to resolve legal issues to gain the rights for Peter Pan, so anything is possible, if Disney really wants to go to the effort.

Mary Poppins will not be seen, even though it is a Disney adaptation. The rights for MP were specific to the one film, and my understanding is that she was reluctant to grant those rights, and afterwards informed Walt that there would be no further licensing for MP.

Now, there are other works that could be adapted. Obviously the King Arthur legend is up for grabs. They could also pursue Sherlock Holmes (Disney did an adapation, Basil of Baker Street). I do believe Treasure Island is public domain (and I think Disney did make an adaptation of this back in the 50's in any case). and some of Charles Dickens works (Oliver Twist, Christmas Carol) could be adapted as well. While none are fairy tales, they are all classic literature that I feel could work well in the Once universe.

Please bear in mind that I am not saying that Once = Disney (because Once =/= Disney), but just recognizing the fact that Disney owns Once, and makes dealing with some of the legal ramifications easier to deal with.