Disney is cracking down on bootleg Baby Yoda merchandise. The incredibly popular baby character from The Mandalorian has a legion of fans eager to buy anything Baby Yoda-themed. Although Baby Yoda is technically not the star of The Mandalorian, he quickly became the darling of the internet when the show premiered and the clamor for any Baby Yoda-related content has yet to cease.
Fans everywhere were delighted by the cute character and countless Baby Yoda memes, fan artwork, fan video edits and more were born. The character became so influential so quickly that Baby Yoda was even featured in TIME’s People of the Year issue for 2019. High demand for Baby Yoda merchandise naturally followed, with genuine shock and confusion over Disney’s decision not to release official merchandise for the 2019 holiday season. (This controversial choice cost Disney millions of dollars in lost sales.) Disney CEO Bob Iger had to step forward to defend the lack of Baby Yoda merchandise, saying that the decision was made to respect The Mandalorian’s creator Jon Favreau’s wish to keep Baby Yoda a secret until the show premiered.
According to The Verge, Disney is now starting to crack down on fans selling unauthorized Baby Yoda merchandise. Sellers on the popular online marketplace Etsy reported that they had their Baby Yoda merchandise listings removed. Disney had filed a complaint with Etsy about sellers using the words “Star Wars,” “mandalorian,” and “Yoda,” to sell goods like Baby Yoda plushies among other merchandise. While the Etsy merchants are still technically able to sell the merchandise, sales and views of their products went down due to their inability to use the key words that would advertise to potential buyers what they have for sale.
Although Disney is fully within their rights to claim copyright over the use of Baby Yoda’s name and image for profit, some Etsy shop owners noted that while their listings were taken down, other sellers of Baby Yoda bootleg merchandise were still able to use the key words that got their own listings suspended. While it may be due to the fact that there are so many unauthorized sellers of Baby Yoda merchandise that Disney simply can’t catch them all, the move is certainly a disheartening one for fans as they wait for more official Baby Yoda items to be released for sale.
With the second season of The Mandalorian set to premiere later this year and more official Baby Yoda merchandise on the way, the adoration for the cute character is in no discernible danger of burning out. Fans can look forward to the chance to create their very own Baby Yoda at Build-A-Bear or bake their own Baby Yoda cream puffs. Regardless if Disney decides to crack down on every piece of bootleg Baby Yoda merchandise out there or not, more than likely the fan inspired content will continue to thrive. Internet fame is fleeting but Baby Yoda is forever.
Next: The Mandalorian: What Is Baby Yoda’s Name?
Source: The Verge
