If "The Muppets" is a success: What's next?

[a_Mickey_Muppet]

yeah! i WAS sooo looking forward to that MUPPET HALLOWEEN SPECIAL too!

 

[TSSD]

I wouldn't want to see the Muppets tucked away for another decade simply because Neilson ratings rate higher for "The Biggest Losing Naked Island Bachelorette Hoarding Housewife Apprentice - Home Edition"

Really? But I heard that it's being filmed at the Jersey Shore this season!


But I agree, a mini series os a good idea, not only from our standpoint, but from Disney's standpoint, for several reasons.
First off, it's a great way for Disney to keep the Muppets out there, so the Muppets keep selling.
Second off, like you said, it creates new contents for DVD's, hence more merch.
Third off, it helps Disney test the waters to see if they want to do a full TV series, which they have to be considering for if the movie does well.

 

[beaker]

I think Im probably the only person on MC here who could care less if the Halloween special is ever made(never cared for Halloween myself), and Season 4...eh...it'll come if it's meant to be. Til then, you know where to find all the episodes(as well as of Muppet Babies, Muppets Tonight, JHH, etc)

Given a lot of Muppet fans never thought Disney would be putting this much prestige and big flagship push for a Muppet film with A-listers and lots of heart...I say just that in itself means that if things take off, there's nothing out of the question when it comes to what cool stuff could be in the works down the road(or already planned)

 

[Luke]

From what i was aware of, at all the past years media industry licensing and branding, tv exporting etc shows, Diz were trying to shop the idea of a Muppet TV show ... so whether that ends up being a series or one off specials i think we will definitely see some form of TV between movies (assuming there is another movie if this is any kind of a success, which the odds seem high it will be since there's a fair bit of media enthusiasm). I hope so, as they need to keep up the momentum with the public once something is actually released. 2012 needs to be a big year!

 

[Beauregard]

Yeah...see, what I'm wondering is whether the media attention, etc, is really being garnered from this being a unique return of the Muppets...Disney will have to work to keep them interested once its over. I'm sure they can, but they'll need to keep up the originality and the use of multi-media marketing.

 

[dwmckim]

From what i was aware of, at all the past years media industry licensing and branding, tv exporting etc shows, Diz were trying to shop the idea of a Muppet TV show ... so whether that ends up being a series or one off specials i think we will definitely see some form of TV between movies (assuming there is another movie if this is any kind of a success, which the odds seem high it will be since there's a fair bit of media enthusiasm). I hope so, as they need to keep up the momentum with the public once something is actually released. 2012 needs to be a big year!

Okay, i'm going to mention a major spoiler from an early draft of the script - but i imagine this is something that will be done differently in the film itself as it would be too misleading and confusing if it wasn't the case outside of the movie...






















An ABC Executive (and it is very specifically referenced as being an "ABC Executive" - that's what the character is named throughout the script) and the Muppets agree to bring The Muppet Show back to television. Now i'm sure this was Segel being a bit overconfident and if Disney doesn't actually plan to do this, i'm sure that will be tweaked in the movie. But it does tend to make one wonder if some major television follow-up, be it series, specials, series of specials, miniseries or what have you would be The Next Step.

 

[Drtooth]

Muppet films instead of Muppet classic literature films. There is a place for the Muppetized retelling of classic stories and that is in segments on television specials rather than assigning the gimmick to an entire motion picture. I think they've figured that out by now.

With MCC and MTi it was an experiment in trying to get the characters back into the spotlight after the deaths of Henson and Richard Hunt... they worked on the level that they were well written and well done, but they didn't have quite the special spark. MTI came very close, only because of the wackiness of the pirates and pig natives, but MCC felt very much like they were guests in their own movie. Oz was a script that somehow was sitting on top of a bunch of better, funnier, fresher scripts and got noticed. Fox's credit shines as a sneaky suspicion that it was meant to be made well before Disney was buying them out. The advertisements for American Idol (as subliminal as they were) kinda hint that it was meant as a Fox Holiday special.

The bright spots of MFS, VMX, and LTS... hey, at least they had the Muppets as the main stars. Though MFS had a LOT of screentime for Jeffery Tambor... but at least he shared it with Bobo.

I hope the films keep coming and it would be great to see some television specials too. I'm not sure we'll ever get a weekly show in this climate and maybe that's a good thing. TV is so cutthroat these days and I wouldn't want to see the Muppets tucked away for another decade simply because Neilson ratings rate higher for "The Biggest Losing Naked Island Bachelorette Hoarding Housewife Apprentice - Home Edition" piece of toxic, forgettable garbage. Specials first, then maaaaaybe a weekly show later.

Nielsen ratings don't enter into it by that much... it's also the non-union sweatshop/ idiots hungry for fame factor that keeps those shows cheap and attractive to the same group of cowardly network execs. That kind of climate IS what keeps shows like a new Muppet Show from having an audience.

Now, the BEST places for a Muppet show would be The Disney Channel or ABC Family, but those channels are married to focus groups. If they can get those groups to watch, they have an audience on those channels. Unfortunately, we'd only see guest stars that cater to those groups. That's what Studio DC was a test market for.

Plus, the Muppets never had a good place on major television networks. ABC did buy 2 pilot/specials to the Muppet Show but they refused the series, NBC treated JHH like it was on another channel and it quickly disappeared, and ABC could never find an audience for MT, shoving it on opposite 60 Minutes. Syndication, PBS, and HBO gave Henson the audience he needed. Cable could be that audience too, but again, that has to depend on the demographic.

 

[Scooterfan5]

Ooh! A Mini-series would be great! And not so dependent on ratings. And would provide brand new content for DVD sales. I really like that idea.

Agreed!

 

[minor muppetz]

Oz was a script that somehow was sitting on top of a bunch of better, funnier, fresher scripts and got noticed. Fox's credit shines as a sneaky suspicion that it was meant to be made well before Disney was buying them out. The advertisements for American Idol (as subliminal as they were) kinda hint that it was meant as a Fox Holiday special.

I recall that the movie was rumored to be in the works before Disney bought the Muppets and long before it was officially announced (I know Kermit made an appearance somewhere hinting at the production, saying something was in the works that he couldn't tell the audience about yet, but then said something to the effect of "check the internet").

 

[fuzzydice82]

I've mentioned this in another post, but the obvious choice is a Muppet episode of 30 Rock on NBC. If you do a quick Google search, you'll find that the internet has presented multiple similarities between The Muppet Show and 30 Rock. Additionally, Muppets have made cameos in I think three 30 Rock episodes. NBC has already done a live episode of 30 Rock and a claymation episode of Community. A muppet episode of 30 Rock wouldn't be a stretch. Although, it would be muppet incarnations of the 30 Rock characters, and not Kermit and the gang.

As far as the actual Muppet gang, I think that the movie should/could make way for a return of The Muppet Show in some way shape or form. Disney Channel is the prime choice for this show. Without knowing the outcome of the movie, it might be interesting to see some form of "Next Generation" with Robin and some new characters taking center stage. Yes, I know we all know and love the original gang, but The Muppet Theater needs to be relevant in a 21st century setting.

As far as more movies, it's taken a long time to get to this movie. Unless this one just blows up at the box office and makes a ton of money, no one is jumping to make another Muppet movie.

All that being said, The Muppet Show comic book has been the greatest Muppet related thing in the past 20 years (besides the Palisades toys). Using the comic book as the basis for a TV series would be great. Have four episodes in a row with the normal variety show, and then do four episodes of Muppet King Arthur or Muppet Sherlock Holmes, and then back to variety show story.

There is potential for the Muppets, but the powers that be have to see potential for profit beyond the rabid fans on these forums