New Pics: Jason Segel and the Muppets at the L.A. movie set

[frogboy4]

I want to add that even though things are looking good right now and I'm glad that the the Muppet Show characters are with Disney, I am VERY glad that Disney does NOT own the Sesame Street characters.

The Sesame Street characters deserve to live on forever on public television.

Exactly right. As it should be. The only reported time Jim Henson ever lost his temper was when Eisner kept bringing up Big Bird! Sesame belongs to the world's children.

However, one thing I always wanted to see was a Fraggle Rock ride at Disneyland. Just imagine! But I doubt Henson will ever part with the Fraggles. Maybe that's a good thing. But I can't help but think that Disney would have put a Fraggle show or film into production by now if they did own them.

 

[Drtooth]

Eisner did bring the Disney Company back from the ledge in the 80's, but later proved to be its greatest liability. He did initiate the Muppet deal in the first place, but was also the reason it became sour even before Jim's death. Eisner is the reason Disney lost the Muppets, lost Katzenberg to DreamWorks, lost Spielberg's support with the Roger Rabbit power struggle, shut down their traditional animation department and nearly lost Pixar! The man couldn't play well with others. He dulled Disney's shine in getting rid of all the magic that makes the company special.

For what Katzenberg almost did to Toy Story, Dreamworks can HAVE him. I really hope Iger can go back and renegotiate Roger Rabbit with Spielberg (and either stop Zermickis's motion capture threat or at least goad him into traditional animation). I will say this, I didn't like where everything was headed at first (the whole Tweens first, everyone else later demographic), but he seems to have turned it around.

I agree... Early Eisner wasn't horrible... we DID get some great projects for a while... Look at The Disney Afternoon and what they did for animation studios in the 80's. But recently he was terrible... really... I swear the Tween stuff started under his watch, and I almost feel Iger got stuck with it... at least they're toning that down and focusing on Phineas and Ferb merchandise (a cartoon, a COMEDY cartoon NOT based on a prior comic or movie to boot!)

The one thing I still think Disney needs to do is to create innovative NON-educational animated kid's programming. I'm hungering for they day they come up with the next Ducktales... and I still find them complete barking loonies for NOT doing a POTC animated series (as obvious a One Piece knock off it would eventually become). That would have been huge. But they took a chance on PNF, and that's gangbusters now... the ball is in their court.

 

[Mupp]

I agree... Early Eisner wasn't horrible... we DID get some great projects for a while... Look at The Disney Afternoon and what they did for animation studios in the 80's.

Yes, that's true, and I agree. It was great for a while....Then it went south.

Thankfully, quality is now top priority again!

 

[matleo]

Eisner did bring the Disney Company back from the ledge in the 80's, but later proved to be its greatest liability. He did initiate the Muppet deal in the first place, but was also the reason it became sour even before Jim's death. Eisner is the reason Disney lost the Muppets, lost Katzenberg to DreamWorks, lost Spielberg's support with the Roger Rabbit power struggle, shut down their traditional animation department and nearly lost Pixar! The man couldn't play well with others. He dulled Disney's shine in getting rid of all the magic that makes the company special. The Muppet sale was his swan song, but I agree that it likely resulted from the idea of his exiting the Disney Company. They have a way to go before they fit the image that I grew up knowing, but they're certainly on their way and I'm glad the Muppets have gone to them. I've mostly supported the Disney sale. Most of my concerns have been put at ease.

Yeah and it's weird. You look at Eisner's career and you HAVE to stop and wonder "Wha' Happened?" Because the company hadn't been doing well when he took over and then from about 85 to 98 where things were better, but then they started creating horrible stuff around the turn of the millenium and you're right Eisner's inability to play nice cost them a lot. Hopefully Iger and the folks who he has put in charge can stay focused.

--Matt

 

[Mupp]

Well, I am really looking forward to the first trailer for this film! When it arrives online, it will certainly create a lot of buzz!

Yes, its probably a bit early for there to be a teaser in front of TRON: Legacy. Still, it would be cool (and a great opportunity) if there was!

 

[Beauregard]

Muppets...back in natural lighting...my life...is now complete...*faint*

 

[beaker]

I think a BIG part of that credit goes to Bob Iger and how he has handled things since taking over. It seems like he's very open to not just having bean-counters run thing but also making sure that creative people have say in things. I think Disney as a company itself has just changed so much in the last 5-6 years and it's ultimately been a good thing for the muppets.

--Matt

It has been quite a seachange and paradigm shift to be sure.
I never would have imagined something as extrordinarily visionary as Tron Legacy, or seeing a Muppet revival to such a level as we're now seeing. Even Pixar has stepped up their game, adding so much more emotional punch to their films(like "Up")

Basically, we have huge Muppet nerds running everything. Muppet nerds ran Palisades, Muppet nerd fanboys insisted upon and are currently filming the new Muppet film, and Muppet fans are running the Muppets at Disney...AND are allowed to do their thing. Now Disney is definitely quite a different animal than under Eisner.

 

[beaker]

There have been EXTREME cases, I just can't think up any examples off the top of my head. it's a blue moon type of deal, and NOTHING we should worry about. I've heard of films in production with indefinite delays, but they're too far in production to shelf completely.... this film, again barring the Apocalypse, will happen.

Most movies that get shelved(for limited runs/dtv a year or two later) are usually seriously lame thriller/horror films(with the exception of Fanboys, which was a comedy but that I also didnt care for much) Mike Judge's Idiocracy got shelved too, though that might have been a mix of bad test screenings and internal politics.(they dump it in a few theaters to technically claim it got a theatrical run)

Disney's whole game plan is to blitzkrieg every manner of advertising, marketing, merchandising, park promotion, visibility, tv appearance, etc with the Muppets throughout 2011 all leading to M-day(dec 25th) I worry though if we still have worry warts on here wondering if its too good to be true when we start seeing giant Muppet billboards on the side of freeways and buildings next fall/winter.

 

[RedPiggy]

I never would have imagined something as extrordinarily visionary as Tron Legacy

Kinda makes me wonder about the Space Paranoids level of Kingdom Hearts 2. Yeah, it uses the plot of the original, but Tron mentions an upgrade since getting copied from Encom, and Sora's light cycle is Sam's. It makes me wonder if the KH team got early notices or if the movies put homages to the game (kind of like how the POTC and KH ... the 2nd and 3rd movies seem more like Sora & company should've been there as much as they whine about hearts and how the locket, when opened, looks kinda like a mechanized heartless symbol).

 

[Drtooth]

Most movies that get shelved(for limited runs/dtv a year or two later) are usually seriously lame thriller/horror films(with the exception of Fanboys, which was a comedy but that I also didnt care for much) Mike Judge's Idiocracy got shelved too, though that might have been a mix of bad test screenings and internal politics.(they dump it in a few theaters to technically claim it got a theatrical run)

I mean shelved as in uncompleted films that get shut down.. not so much completed films that somehow get a screwy release like Idiocracy did. I've said it in the Fraggle thread, Weinstine is sitting on the completed Hoodwinked 2 (not that I really care for it, but considering how they're handling that is partially why we ain't ever getting a Fraggle movie) for well over a year now, and they're still refusing to release a COMPLETED film. They got sued for it.