List of films in the public domain in the United States

This is a non-definitive list of films in the public domain in the United States. A number of films exist that certain cited sources believe are in the public domain in the United States. Being in the public domain refers to cinematic, dramatic, literary, musical, and artistic works that no government, organization, or individual owns, and as such is common property. This list is not comprehensive; the vast majority of public domain films are not included here for various reasons.
Note: Films in this list may incorporate elements from other works that are still under copyright, even though the film itself is out of copyright.

Copyrightable elements of a film

There is no official list of films in the public domain. It is difficult to determine the public domain status of a film because it can incorporate any or all of the following copyrightable elements:

Cinematography
Drama
Literature
Music
Art
Graphical characters
Fictional characters

Film copyright involves the copyright status of multiple elements that make up the film. A film can lose its copyright in some of those elements while retaining copyright in other elements. Experts in the field of public domain sometimes differ in their opinions as to whether a particular film is in the public domain.
The use of music in a film can cause uncertainty with regard to copyright. As of 2010, it is not known whether the use of music in a film constitutes publication of the music for the purpose of copyright. Unpublished works are treated differently from published works under US copyright law.

Judicial interpretation of public domain

Judges, too, differ in their interpretation of the laws governing copyright protection. The United States is a "patchwork quilt" of inconsistent copyright rules in different federal judicial districts. The courts of one jurisdiction are not obliged to follow the decisions of another. The Supreme Court of the United States very seldom decides copyright cases, and then only when an important principle is involved.

Documenting public domain status

If a film appears on the list below, there is a high probability it has lost some or all of its United States copyright protection or in the case of U.S. government films, was never protected by copyright.
There is no single method for determining if a film, or parts of it, is in the public domain. There are several methods that can be used to document a film's public domain status. These include the following:

Lack of renewal

Prior to 1988, all motion picture films published after 1909 with a copyright notice where the 28th year of copyright would occur before 1988, had to be registered and before the 28th year, the registration had to be renewed, or the copyright for the film would expire and it would enter the public domain. This would apply to all films registered for copyright prior to 1960. Copyright renewals became optional in 1988.

Missing or flawed copyright notice

Prior to 1978, films had to contain a valid copyright notice in order to claim copyright; at the bare minimum, the copyright notice had to list the word "copyright", the year of publication, and the name of the entity claiming the copyright. From 1978 to 1988, if a work was published without a notice, the creator had five years to claim a copyright by registering it with the U.S. Copyright Board.
For an example, note the case of the television series The New 3 Stooges, pictured. Episodes of the series were published with an incomplete copyright notice with a year and copyright symbol but no claimant. The series was published before the U.S. joined the post-1988 Berne Convention, causing the lack of an explicit claimant to ensure that the series immediately lapses into the public domain. Had the series been published under the terms of the Berne Convention, and automatic copyright granted, it would be an orphan work, since it would be unclear which of the three companies involved in its production; Cambria Studios, C3 Entertainment and Normandy Productions could have each claimed to own the series.

Date of publication

All motion pictures made and exhibited before are indisputably in the public domain in the United States. This date will move forward one year, every year, meaning that films released in will enter the public domain in, films from in, and so on.
Before the passage of the Copyright Term Extension Act in 1998, the term of copyright in the U.S. was a maximum of 75 years, with the work entering the public domain on January 1 of the 76th year from creation. As such, all films released before 1923 would have entered the public domain by January 1, 1998. Although the CTEA added 20 years to the terms of all existing copyrights, until 2019, it explicitly refused to revive any copyrights that had expired prior to its passage. On January 1, 2019, the 20-year extension expired and new works began entering the public domain each year thereafter.

Work of the United States government

All copyrightable works made by United States government employees as part of their official duties are in the public domain from their creation. The status of works made by contractors is dependent on the terms of their contract. Note that this applies only to the federal government, and not to state or local governments, which may or may not claim copyright depending on state laws.

Determine copyright registration

Motion picture copyright registrations prior to 1978 were published in semi-annual Copyright Catalogs. The Library of Congress also published cumulative Copyright Catalogs of motion picture registrations for the periods

1894–1911
1912–1939
1940–1949
1950–1959
1960–1969
1970–1979
1980–1989

All are out of print. However, the Film Superlist series is a complete reprint of all registrations in the Copyright Catalogs for 1894 through 1959. There is no cumulative Copyright Catalog for 1970–1977; the Copyright Office published 16 semi-annual Copyright Catalog booklets covering that eight-year period, but all are out of print and extremely rare. All copyright registrations from 1978 onward are online at the Library of Congress website.
Some decades of The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures include copyright registration information for feature films of United States origin. This can include a statement that research failed to disclose copyright registration for a particular film. Copyright registration information is given in the following:

The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures, 1931–1940;
The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures, 1941–1950;

The United States copyright website catalogs all the works prior to 1978 that have been renewed.
Several pieces of work have been renewed in the form of collections, thus giving the collection as a whole copyright protection.

Copyright renewal status

For films registered in –1963 inclusive, it is essential to know the renewal status. The semi-annual Copyright Catalog booklets have virtually complete lists of renewals for the films registered 28 years earlier. Those semi-annual booklets all are out of print. However, for through 1959, the Film Superlist books match copyright renewals with earlier registrations. Copyright registrations and renewals can be found in

Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain 1894–1939
Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain 1940–1949
Film Superlist: Motion Pictures in the U.S. Public Domain 1950–1959

In 1992, Congress changed the copyright law to make renewal automatic for copyrights registered in 1964 and later.

Underlying rights

Many of the movies listed below are based on novels, plays, magazine stories or a combination of these sources. In some cases, a film's copyright has lapsed because of non-renewal while the underlying literary or dramatic source is still protected by copyright; for example, the movie His Girl Friday became a public domain film in 1969 because it was not renewed, but it is based on the 1928 play The Front Page, which is still under copyright until 2024 and thus, as a practical matter, the film cannot be used without permission.

Films

All films that were released before, or are the work of the United States government, are now in the public domain in the United States. They are not listed here in order to keep this list to a manageable size. See :Category:Films by year for pre- films.

Note: This list is not comprehensive; the vast majority of public domain films are not listed here. This list includes a selection of notable films where a reliable secondary source is available that discusses public domain status.

Film title	Release year	Director	Studio / Distributor	Entered the public domain in	Reason for entering the public domain	Note
Abraham Lincoln	1930	D. W. Griffith	United Artists	1958	Copyright not renewed
Africa Screams	1949	Charles Barton	United Artists	1977	Copyright not renewed
Algiers	1938	John Cromwell	United Artists	1966	Copyright not renewed
The Amazing Mr. X	1948	Bernard Vorhaus	Eagle-Lion Films			Also known as The Spiritualist
Angel and the Badman	1947	James Edward Grant	Republic Pictures	1975	Copyright not renewed
The Animal Kingdom	1932	Edward H. Griffith	RKO Radio Pictures	1960	Copyright not renewed
At War with the Army	1950	Hal Walker	Paramount Pictures
Attack of the Giant Leeches	1959	Bernard L. Kowalski	American International Pictures
The Bat	1959	Crane Wilbur	Allied Artists
Beat the Devil	1953	John Huston	United Artists	1980	Copyright not renewed	The 2016 restoration is not in the public domain.
Beau Ideal	1931	Herbert Brenon	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Becky Sharp	1935	Rouben Mamoulian	RKO Radio Pictures
Behind Office Doors	1931	Melville W. Brown	RKO Radio Pictures	1959	Copyright not renewed
Bird of Paradise	1932	King Vidor	RKO Radio Pictures	1960	Copyright not renewed
Blood on the Sun	1945	Frank Lloyd	United Artists	1973	Copyright not renewed
Blue Steel	1934	Robert N. Bradbury	Lone Star Pictures		.
Bowery at Midnight	1942	Wallace Fox	Monogram Pictures
The Brain That Wouldn't Die	1962	Joseph Green	American International Pictures	1962	Missing copyright notice	Originally completed in 1959 under the title The Black Door, it was not released until May 3, 1962, where failure to add the copyright notice resulted in the film entering the public domain.
Brideless Groom	1947	Edward Bernds	Columbia Pictures	1960s	Copyright not renewed	Short film
A Bucket of Blood	1959	Roger Corman	American International Pictures
Captain Kidd	1945	Rowland V. Lee	United Artists
Carnival of Souls	1962	Herk Harvey	Herts-Lion International Corp.	1962	Missing copyright notice	There was a dispute about the rights to the film from 1990 to 1995. The entirety of the film rights might have been granted to John Clifford in 1996.
Charade	1963	Stanley Donen	Universal Pictures	1963	Defective copyright notice	Original music still in copyright Original story by Peter Stone still in copyright
Check and Double Check	1930	Melville W. Brown	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Conspiracy	1930	Christy Cabanne	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Cyrano de Bergerac	1950	Michael Gordon	United Artists	1980s
The Dance of Life	1929	John Cromwell	Paramount Pictures	1957	Copyright not renewed
Danger Lights	1930	George B. Seitz	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
The Deadly Companions	1961	Sam Peckinpah	Pathé-America	1961	Missing copyright notice
Debbie Does Dallas	1978	Jim Clark	VCX	1981	Missing copyright notice	The Dallas Cowboys hold veto power on commercial publication due to unauthorized use of their cheerleaders' trademarks.
Dementia 13	1963	Francis Ford Coppola	American International Pictures			Also known as The Haunted and the Hunted
Detour	1945	Edgar G. Ulmer	Producers Releasing Corporation		Copyright not renewed
The Devil Bat	1940	Jean Yarbrough	Producers Releasing Corporation
Disorder in the Court	1936	Preston Black	Columbia Pictures	1960s	Copyright not renewed	Short film
Dixiana	1930	Luther Reed	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
D.O.A.	1949	Rudolph Maté	United Artists	1977	Copyright not renewed
Ella Cinders	1926	Alfred E. Green	First National Pictures
The Emperor Jones	1933	Dudley Murphy	United Artists
Father's Little Dividend	1951	Vincente Minnelli	MGM	1978	Copyright not renewed
'	1932	Frank Borzage	Paramount Pictures	1960	Copyright not renewed	Based on copyrighted novel by Ernest Hemingway
Fear and Desire	1953	Stanley Kubrick	Joseph Burstyn		Copyright not renewed
The Front Page	1931	Lewis Milestone	United Artists			Source material rights under copyright until 2024
The General	1927	Clyde Bruckman Buster Keaton	United Artists	1955	Copyright not renewed
Glen or Glenda	1953	Ed Wood	Columbia Classics
Go for Broke!	1951	Robert Pirosh	MGM	1978	Copyright not renewed
God's Little Acre	1958	Anthony Mann	United Artists			The colorized version is not in the public domain.
The Gold Rush	1925	Charlie Chaplin	United Artists	1953	Copyright not renewed	1942 revised version in copyright
The Gorilla	1939	Allan Dwan	20th Century Fox
The Great Flamarion	1945	Anthony Mann	Republic Pictures		Copyright not renewed
Gulliver's Travels	1939	Dave Fleischer	Paramount Pictures	1967	Copyright not renewed
Half Shot at Sunrise	1930	Paul Sloane	RKO Radio Productions	1958	Copyright not renewed
His Girl Friday	1940	Howard Hawks	Columbia Pictures	1967	Copyright not renewed	Source material rights under copyright until 2024
The Hitch-Hiker	1953	Ida Lupino	RKO Radio Pictures
Hook, Line and Sinker	1930	Edward F. Cline	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
House on Haunted Hill	1959	William Castle	Allied Artists
Indestructible Man	1956	Jack Pollexfen	Allied Artists
Inside the Lines	1930	Roy Pomeroy	RKO Radio Productions	1958	Copyright not renewed
The Inspector General	1949	Henry Koster	Warner Bros.
It's a Wonderful Life	1946	Frank Capra	Liberty Films RKO Pictures	1975	Copyright not renewed	While the film images are public domain, under rulings of Stewart v. Abend, the film text is based on the copyrighted short story "The Greatest Gift" by Philip Van Doren Stern. Republic also purchased the exclusive rights to the film's copyrighted music to further shore up its rights.
The Jackie Robinson Story	1950	Alfred E. Green	Eagle-Lion Films			Ancillary rights owned by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
The Joe Louis Story	1953	Robert Gordon	United Artists
Kansas City Confidential	1952	Phil Karlson	United Artists		Copyright not renewed
Kept Husbands	1931	Lloyd Bacon	RKO Radio Productions	1959	Copyright not renewed
The Lady Refuses	1931	George Archainbaud	RKO Radio Productions	1959	Copyright not renewed
'	1930	Victor Sjöström	MGM	1958	Copyright not renewed	Based on the play They Knew What They Wanted
Last Clear Chance	1959	Robert Carlisle	Union Pacific Railroad	1959	Not registered for copyright
The Last Man on Earth	1964	Ubaldo Ragona, Sidney Salkow	American International Pictures, 20th Century Fox	1992	Copyright not renewed
The Last Time I Saw Paris	1954	Richard Brooks	MGM	1972	Defective copyright notice	Music score still protected by copyright
Lawful Larceny	1930	Lowell Sherman	RKO Radio Productions	1958	Copyright not renewed
Leathernecking	1930	Edward F. Cline	RKO Radio Productions	1958	Copyright not renewed
Letter of Introduction	1938	John M. Stahl	Universal Pictures	1966	Copyright not renewed
Life with Father	1947	Michael Curtiz	Warner Bros.	1975	Copyright not renewed
The Little Princess	1939	Walter Lang	20th Century Fox	1967	Copyright not renewed
Little Shop of HorrorsThe Little Shop of Horrors	1960	Roger Corman	Filmgroup	1988	Copyright not renewed
Lonely Wives	1931	Russell Mack	RKO Radio Pictures	1959	Copyright not renewed
Love Affair	1939	Leo McCarey	RKO Radio Pictures	1967	Copyright not renewed
Love Laughs at Andy Hardy	1945	Willis Goldbeck	MGM		Copyright not renewed
The Lucky Texan	1934	Robert N. Bradbury	Lone Star Pictures		.
Made for Each Other	1939	John Cromwell	United Artists
Malice in the Palace	1949	Jules White	Columbia Pictures	1960s	Copyright not renewed	Short film
The Man from Utah	1934	Robert N. Bradbury	Lone Star Pictures		.
The Man with the Golden Arm	1955	Otto Preminger	United Artists
Maniac	1934	Dwain Esper	Roadshow Attractions			Also known as Sex Maniac
'	1966	Harold P. Warren	Emerson Film Enterprises	1968	Failure to display copyright notice	Original script may have been copyrighted
March of the Wooden Soldiers	1950	Gus Meins	Lippert Pictures	1950	Failure to display copyright notice	This is a later abridgement of Babes in Toyland, which is still in copyright. Its public domain status remains unclear.
McLintock!	1963	Andrew V. McLaglen	United Artists	1991	Copyright not renewed	Music score still under copyright
Meet John Doe	1941	Frank Capra	Warner Bros.	1969	Copyright not renewed
Millie	1931	John Francis Dillon	RKO Radio Pictures	1959	Copyright not renewed
Mr. Imperium	1951	Don Hartman	MGM	1978	Copyright not renewed
My Dear Secretary	1948	Charles Martin	United Artists
My Favorite Brunette	1947	Elliott Nugent	Paramount Pictures	1975	Copyright not renewed
My Man Godfrey	1936	Gregory La Cava	Universal Pictures			While the film images are public domain, under rulings of Stewart v. Abend, the film text is based on the copyrighted 1935 book My Man Godfrey by Eric S. Hatch.
Night of the Living Dead	1968	George A. Romero	Walter Reade	1968	Missing copyright notice and errors from the distributor
Nothing Sacred	1937	William A. Wellman	Selznick, United Artists	1965	Copyright not renewed
Of Human Bondage	1934	John Cromwell	RKO Radio Pictures	1962	Copyright not renewed
One-Eyed Jacks	1961	Marlon Brando	Pennebaker Productions, Paramount Pictures	1988	Copyright not renewed
Our Town	1940	Sam Wood	United Artists
The Outlaw	1943	Howard Hughes	Howard Hughes Prod., United Artists	1971	Copyright not renewed
The Painted Hills	1951	Harold F. Kress	MGM	1979	Copyright not renewed
The Pay-Off	1930	Lowell Sherman	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Penny Serenade	1941	George Stevens	Columbia Pictures	1968	Copyright not renewed
The Phantom of the Opera	1925	Rupert Julian	Universal Studios	1953	Copyright not renewed
Plan 9 from Outer Space	1959	Ed Wood	Distributors Corporation of America	1987
Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves	1937	Dave Fleischer	Paramount Pictures			Second of three Popeye Technicolor two-reel specials
Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor	1936	Dave Fleischer	Paramount Pictures			First of three Popeye Technicolor two-reel specials
Pot o' Gold	1941	George Marshall	United Artists
Quicksand	1950	Irving Pichel	United Artists
Rage at Dawn	1955	Tim Whelan	RKO Pictures
Rain	1932	Lewis Milestone	United Artists	1960	Copyright not renewed
Randy Rides Alone	1934	Harry L. Fraser	Lone Star Pictures	1934	Copyright notice lacks claimant
The Red House	1947	Delmer Daves	United Artists
Reefer Madness	1936	Louis J. Gasnier	Motion Picture Ventures	1936	Improper copyright notice	Also called The Burning Question, Dope Addict, and Tell Your Children
Riders of Destiny	1933	Robert N. Bradbury	Lone Star Pictures		.
Road to Bali	1952	Hal Walker	Paramount Pictures	1980	Copyright not renewed on time	Ancillary rights now owned by FremantleMedia
Rock, Rock, Rock!	1956	Will Price	Distributors Corporation of America	1984	Copyright not renewed	The Chuck Berry soundtrack of the film may not be in the public domain.
The Royal Bed	1931	Lowell Sherman	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Royal Wedding	1951	Stanley Donen	MGM	1978	Copyright not renewed
Sagebrush Trail	1933	Armand Schaefer	Lone Star Pictures	1933	Copyright notice lacks claimant	Remake of Partners of the Trail
Salt of the Earth	1954	Herbert Biberman	Independent Productions
Santa Claus Conquers the Martians	1964	Nicholas Webster	Embassy Pictures Corporation		Missing copyright notice	Musical score owned by Famous Music
Santa Fe Trail	1940	Michael Curtiz	Warner Bros.	1968	Copyright not renewed
Scarlet Street	1945	Fritz Lang	Universal Pictures
The Screaming Skull	1958	Alex Nicol	American International Pictures	1958	Not registered for copyright
Second Chorus	1940	H.C. Potter	Paramount Pictures		Copyright not renewed
The Secret Hour	1928	Rowland V. Lee	Paramount Pictures	1956	Copyright not renewed	Based on the play They Knew What They Wanted
The Silver Horde	1930	George Archainbaud	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Sin Takes a Holiday	1930	Paul L. Stein	RKO Radio Pictures	1958	Copyright not renewed
Sing a Song of Six Pants	1947	Jules White	Columbia Pictures	1960s	Copyright not renewed	Short film
Sinners in Paradise	1938	James Whale	Universal Pictures	1966	Copyright not renewed
Sita Sings the Blues	2008	Nina Paley	GKIDS	2010	Dedicated to public domain films
Smouldering Fires	1925	Clarence Brown	Universal Pictures	1953	Copyright not renewed
The Snows of Kilimanjaro	1952	Henry King	20th Century Fox			Based on copyrighted novel by Ernest Hemingway
The Southerner	1945	Jean Renoir	United Artists
'	1937	William A. Wellman	Selznick, United Artists	1965	Copyright not renewed
The Star Packer	1934	Robert N. Bradbury	Lone Star Pictures		.
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers	1946	Lewis Milestone	Paramount Pictures	1974	Copyright not renewed
The Stranger	1946	Orson Welles	International Pictures, RKO Radio Productions	1973	Copyright not renewed
Suddenly	1954	Lewis Allen	United Artists	1983	Copyright not renewed
Superman	1941-1943	Dave Fleischer, various	Paramount Pictures			Although all the entries in this series are in the public domain, ancillary rights such as merchandising contract rights, as well as the original 35mm master elements, are owned today by Warner Bros. Animation. Warner has owned Superman publisher DC Comics since 1969.
Swing High, Swing Low	1937	Mitchell Leisen	Paramount Pictures	1965	Copyright not renewed
Teenagers from Outer Space	1959	Tom Graeff	Warner Bros.	1987	Copyright not renewed
The Terror	1963	Roger Corman	American International Pictures, Filmgroup	1963	Missing copyright registration	In the early 1990s, Corman asked Mark Griffiths to shoot 12 minutes of additional footage starring Dick Miller, thus making a new film titled The Return of the Terror, so Corman could claim his copyright.
Three Guys Named Mike	1951	Charles Walters	MGM	1978	Copyright not renewed
Till the Clouds Roll By	1946	Richard Whorf	MGM	1974	Copyright not renewed
Too Late for Tears	1949	Byron Haskin	United Artists
Topper Returns	1941	Roy Del Ruth	United Artists	1969	Copyright not renewed
Vengeance Valley	1951	Richard Thorpe	MGM	1978	Copyright not renewed
The Wasp Woman	1959	Roger Corman	Filmgroup
West of the Divide	1934	Robert N. Bradbury	Lone Star Pictures		.
White Zombie	1932	Victor Halperin	United Artists			The source material for the film may not be in the public domain.
Wives Under Suspicion	1938	James Whale	Universal Pictures	1966	Copyright not renewed

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