2011 Muppet Movie plot officially announced

[Muppet Man]

Will Muppets Tonight muppets be in this movie?

Does anyone know whether this movie will be about classic Muppet Show muppets only or will it contain characters such as Pepe, Johnny and Sal? Personally, I hope it's classic muppets only.

 

[Drtooth]

It still would have been nice for them to have done more though. That cancelled Halloween special would have been a great help!

The problem with the Halloween special is thus....

It was canned a couple years ago because it didn't have enough development time. It was canned this year in anticipation of filming this project, even though it actually started filming recently... I'd tend to think the puppeteers and everyone else involved would like a nice rest up before a big movie anyway.

However, for the next year, the Halloween special should indeed get filmed,again, those involved need some rest after that... and hopefully filming that won't run so concurrently with filming Sesame Street. Not only would it be a nice little reminder of the property, but it's been 2 years since a major TV project. If nothing else, more people who wouldn't pay to see them in the theaters would at least be inclined to watch them for free on television... maybe generally reminding them how fun they were, coaxing them into theaters... or at least waiting till the DVD.

If your name rhymes with Mames Mameron, Weter Wackson or Nack Nyder you can have a 4 hour movie in theaters and people will flock in droves to see it.

But they're not really things you could take kids to without them squirming in the seats. Those are for older audiences that would be able to pay attention to a single film for that long. As it stands, when they rereleased Toy Story 1 and 2 to theaters, they added a 10 minute recess inbetween the films. And for those who wanted to stay in their seats (though, when they say "use this time to use the bathroom," you kinda have to) they had some rare footage shown on screen.

 

[GonzoLeaper]

Nice to see an official synopsis for this new Muppets movie.
And I guess I should preface this with saying that I generally believe in giving everything the benefit of the doubt and not prejudging it, and I don't intend to do that with this movie.
Unless it's drastically out of character and incredibly, horribly vile (which I don't think it ever would be with The Muppets)- I'm going to see new Muppets productions- no question.
However, I'm not totally enthused about this synopsis.
It could be because I don't care that much for Jason Segel and Nick Stoller. But there are some things with this plotline that just doesn't sound all that new or exciting. For one thing, if we're following any kind of continuity at all, "It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie" established the Muppet Theater as an historical landmark. What happened to that? If this is the case, how would someone be able to raze it to dig for oil that's discovered there?
And why would The Muppets all have gone their separate ways? Are they no longer performing together at the Muppet Theater?
It sounds like a bit of a mesh of "The Muppets Take Manhattan" with "It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie" to some degree, and certainly some shades of "The Muppet Movie".
I hope Walter is a funny addition, but I really don't think new Muppets are needed- I'd rather they just focus on the classic ones and I'm cool with them throwing in some characters from Muppets Tonight or even The Jim Henson Hour if they want to.
I just don't think the idea of Walter as an obsessed Muppets fan is all that funny- except for the anachronism that he himself is in fact technically a "muppet".
I also worry some that there may be a level of subversive humor in there that I don't care for- but I trust things will be kept clean and smooth (rather than edgy because I really get tired of that word to describe the Muppets all the time). Yes, the Muppets will have their jabs here and there and yes- I'm sure there may be some double entendres and puns and such- but I hope that will be tasteful. Some of the jokes in "The Muppets Wizard of Oz" particularly and in "It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie" for that matter got kinda risque.
A Muppets Telethon could be funny- it's just that it seems all of this movie has been done in some fashion or another before.
I do like the fact that Animal is an anger management clinic- that's funny. And the fact that Gonzo is in plumbing- that's a nice tie-in to "The Muppet Movie".
But seriously- tell me this thing isn't really going to be called "The Muppets Movie". We're going to have a one letter difference from the first movie? You know that's going to get incredibly confusing and annoyingly confusing. "The Greatest Muppet Telethon Ever" actually wouldn't be too bad of a name for the movie. But it would be better to have something distinctive for the title- or at least a subtitle that it will inevitably wind up becoming better known by.
Anyway, those are my concerns with the movie. Nonetheless, it's nice that it's being released at Thanksgiving next year and I will certainly be thankful to see another Muppet movie in theaters for the first time since 1999. And yes, I'll definitely be there to see it whatever the outcome. And yes, I hope my fears will be allayed and that it will turn out to be one of the best Muppet movies ever. I'm not saying this to be negative about the movie and I'm not trying to knock it- I'm just expressing my feelings on what's been revealed of it so far.
But I'm definitely excited for more Muppets- Hey! A movie!

 

[Barry Lee]

I believe it's just gonna be called, "The Muppets" similar to the re-franchising of such things as "The Smurfs" etc. But i love the plot, it'll be a nice re-introduction to the characters.

 

[dwayne1115]

This is pretty cool I think it has a personal meaning to what really happend to Jason when he was working with Henson on his other movie. I'm kind of suprised that disney has let him kind of lossly base themselfs as an oil company. Brave move, and at the same time a wise one.
I think by the start of the new year we should see some more new Muppet things come out maybe with all hope Season 4 of the Muppet Show. We have less then a year to wait we need a countdown till the big day im very happy!

 

[Starchamberfall]

GonzoLeaper wrote:

"I also worry some that there may be a level of subversive humor in there that I don't care for- but I trust things will be kept clean and smooth (rather than edgy because I really get tired of that word to describe the Muppets all the time). Yes, the Muppets will have their jabs here and there and yes- I'm sure there may be some double entendres and puns and such- but I hope that will be tasteful. Some of the jokes in "The Muppets Wizard of Oz" particularly and in "It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie" for that matter got kinda risque."

I agree. And it's not a moral issue, it's a magic issue: the magic is lost when things veer towards an (unintentional) attitude of "they're only puppets: let's get some cheap laughs."

The ideal for me would be Richard Pryor with in the Muppet Movie, where there was a nod to his style of humor, but also someting really beautiful: the encounter with the muppets bringing a performance out of him we would not have had otherwise, and I guess showing there was more to him than comedy.

 

[RedPiggy]

GonzoLeaper: For one thing, if we're following any kind of continuity at all, "It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie" established the Muppet Theater as an historical landmark. What happened to that? If this is the case, how would someone be able to raze it to dig for oil that's discovered there?

I think they said Muppet Studios, not the Theater. Different coasts for different buildings.

And why would The Muppets all have gone their separate ways? Are they no longer performing together at the Muppet Theater?

I would agree, but it occurred to me that it seems strange that the Muppets would require their Christmas show to have enough money to pay off Bitterman's payments (geez, are they annual?). My thing is, why must they go all out for one show to pay for this if they've been playing all year? Solution: They do the Theater gig part time.

1. They all met and went to California to be "rich and famous". (TMM)
2. They wanted to do Theater as well, and since Kermit lived on SST, he was able to get the crew into a university to study theater. (MTM)
3. They use the Theater for special shows while also using Muppet Studios for other media stuff. However, when things are slow, they all get day jobs. (Most likely this movie, MTM, VMX)
edit: Think about it. While they have to be guilt tripped into deferring their paychecks for a whole year, it actually makes absolutely no sense as they'd starve/be homeless/etc if they did that -- UNLESS they have other paying jobs they do.

At least, that's my guess.

I just don't think the idea of Walter as an obsessed Muppets fan is all that funny- except for the anachronism that he himself is in fact technically a "muppet".

Yes, but some Muppets (with a capital M) are celebrities while others are just whatnots/anythings. Walter is a muppet who fantasizes about working with the Muppets. See the difference? Look at this girl who was in Yahoo news for getting bullied about being a Star Wars fan. And then fans and crew alike started sending her stuff to make her feel better and show their support. Maybe Walter is like this girl: he feels outside the loop socially and attaches himself to the idea that if he were friends with celebrity versions of himself, he'd be "cool" too.

 

[Drtooth]

I will say VMX was deliberately going at a very popular style of humor at the time, but I'd shudder to call it completely risque. Oz was just a grasp at straws...

Nah, I'm sure they'll keep it as kid friendly as possible. I've seen much worse anyway.

I would agree, but it occurred to me that it seems strange that the Muppets would require their Christmas show to have enough money to pay off Bitterman's payments (geez, are they annual?). My thing is, why must they go all out for one show to pay for this if they've been playing all year? Solution: They do the Theater gig part time.

1. They all met and went to California to be "rich and famous". (TMM)
2. They wanted to do Theater as well, and since Kermit lived on SST, he was able to get the crew into a university to study theater. (MTM)
3. They use the Theater for special shows while also using Muppet Studios for other media stuff. However, when things are slow, they all get day jobs. (Most likely this movie, MTM, VMX)

At least, that's my guess.

That goes into the fuzziness of trying to put together a Muppet Canon. There's no doubt there will be references to other Muppet Movies, but let's not kid ourselves. The ONLY time in a movie where the events of another movie have been referenced was VMX, and that was only a nod to Doc Hopper's fast food Frog Legs. I never felt MTM followed any story connected to TMM or GMC... The events of TMM left them supposedly big Hollywood stars... why would it be so hard to then go to Broadway, especially if all else failed, they still had their Hollywood movie career to fall back on? None of the movies directly follow each other (again, except VMX... but ONLY for the Doc Hopper connection). Though they will no doubt follow the actions of the first film, mentioning the studios as opposed to a theater.

Again, I'm looking forward to this film... I just hope people don't realize it's the same as UHF's basic plot...

 

[zns]

It just gets better and better. I am on the edge of my seat with this movie.

 

[RedPiggy]

There's no doubt there will be references to other Muppet Movies, but let's not kid ourselves. The ONLY time in a movie where the events of another movie have been referenced was VMX, and that was only a nod to Doc Hopper's fast food Frog Legs. I never felt MTM followed any story connected to TMM or GMC... The events of TMM left them supposedly big Hollywood stars... why would it be so hard to then go to Broadway, especially if all else failed, they still had their Hollywood movie career to fall back on? None of the movies directly follow each other (again, except VMX... but ONLY for the Doc Hopper connection). Though they will no doubt follow the actions of the first film, mentioning the studios as opposed to a theater.

Yeah, I get it ... but the plotholes are like those optical illusions where there's a broken triangle and your brain tries to fill in the gaps.
It just makes better sense if the movie/tv gig is different from their theater gig. There's no way they can afford the basics of life if nothing's connected. And let's not forget there are issues with live performances that can be conveniently skipped over when taping it. Perhaps they do better in movies/tv because it's easier for them. While I enjoyed watching the Broadway version of the Lion King ... there are differences in what can be done on stage and on the screen. I liked some of the changes and sighed with disappointment with some of the others. Being a success at one thing doesn't exactly mean you'll be an automatic success at something else.