Empire acquires rights to Jim Henson screenplay

[Beauregard]

I read an interesting article who suggested that Lisa Henson was interested in merging Henson and the Muppet Man (much as these threads appear to be merged...interesting...) into one workable script.

 

[Vic Romano]

Thanks for the clarification, dwmckim. I had been asking if the two were the same or not, and you're the first to provide a satisfactory answer!

 

[frogboy4]

My two cents on it.

Muppet Man seems to have some fantastical elements to it. The bits I read had some wonderful visuals. However, it's been noted that Jim had a great imagination, but did not live in it the way Muppet Man portrays him. In fact, Caroll Spinney mentioned specifically in his book that Jim wasn't precious with the puppets. He didn't engage with them off-screen as anything other than props to facilitate projects. This script has shades of Permanent Midnight. Personally, I think if a Jim biopic was to be made that Jane Henson should sit down with a screenwriter and provide the bulk of the whats and whens. Frank Oz would be a great person to get as well. But no meaningful script can be pieced together by use of the Wiki and have the core it needs. An aging smoking and drinking Kermit? I’m no Pollyanna, yet that just tells me that at the heart of it this author just doesn't get it.

 

[dwayne1115]

Here is something I was thinking about. If they made a movie that showd Jim, and posably the other Muppeteres in a not so good light, whould that not also affect how people look at the Muppets?

 

[Beauregard]

I agree with, Jamie. Jim was imaginative, yes, but he controlled his imagination...not the other way around.

 

[dabauckham]

I agree, I agree. They need to strike a balance between keeping things in Jim's life real, and not overly precious (the book "Street Gang" did a good job presenting the grit but not in any kind of sensational way), but at the same time not making a movie edgy or dark just to make money. Seeing that there are old, pot-bellied Muppets in Muppet Man reminds me a little of that awful youtube version of Nine Inch Nail's Hurt, in which Kermit is drinking himself under the table and doing all kinds of masochistic things to himself. It just felt so...wrong. And it does create an unfortunate lasting impression. That's not true to the spirit of the Muppets.

 

[MrBloogarFoobly]

Would anyone be able to share the script? I'd really love to read it.

 

[unclematt]

Would anyone be able to share the script? I'd really love to read it.

Same here.

 

[Puckrox]

Ack! There goes one of my dreams. I'm looking at writing screenplays once I'm out of college, and while I'm not a fan of writing biopics, I was honestly considering writing one for Jim Henson. I guess the world just beat me to it.

I just hope whatever biopic comes out about him is accurate. It's okay if they bend reality just a smidgen, but I hate it when they portray people completely wrong. A movie about Jim Henson's life needs to be done just right, and they're going to have to find terribly talented actors who, not only can embody Jim and the muppeteer gang, but can also do the voices and animate the muppet characters.

 

[BobThePizzaBoy]

Ack! There goes one of my dreams. I'm looking at writing screenplays once I'm out of college, and while I'm not a fan of writing biopics, I was honestly considering writing one for Jim Henson. I guess the world just beat me to it.

I just hope whatever biopic comes out about him is accurate. It's okay if they bend reality just a smidgen, but I hate it when they portray people completely wrong. A movie about Jim Henson's life needs to be done just right, and they're going to have to find terribly talented actors who, not only can embody Jim and the muppeteer gang, but can also do the voices and animate the muppet characters.

You don't have anything to worry about, this movie isn't happening. At least I'm sure it isn't.