Muppet Land!

Does anybody know what is going on with Jim Henson's Muppets? I mean there were plans, before Jim died, for a Muppet dark ride and parade for Disney (MGM) Studios. The ride died in the water and the parade turned into a Dinosaur parade (from the Disney/Henson TV show). That was in 1991. The whole Disney/Henson deal went sour after Jim died & Disney lawyers tried to get the Henson Co. for dirt cheap. Muppetvision 3D was the only attraction that was to matterialize from the original deal.

Now that Disney purchased the Jim Henson Company (like more than a year ago) why the heck are they not capitalizing on the muppet characters (in parks or video). Why not dust off the ol' dark ride plans. I think it would be a fantastic addition, and great fix for the Studios park to add a "Muppet Land". (And for god's sake, do not put the muppets in MK!)

So... what are your thoughts on this subject and does anybody have any new information on the status of Jim Henson's Muppets???:veryconfu

I haven't heard much. Ever since Disney acquired the Muppets not much has come out with any plans for them in the parks, movies or TV.

Isn't there a Fraggle Rock movie in production right now....is that being released by one of the Disney companies?

And in France they are producing a French Muppet Show.

PSU_Princess said:

Isn't there a Fraggle Rock movie in production right now....is that being released by one of the Disney companies?

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The Fraggles and the Sesame Street gang were NOT part of the Muppet sale from Henson. The new Fraggle movie will probably be distributed by someone else. Disney only owns the traditional Muppet characters of Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, et al.

I think you guys have forgotten (perhaps by choice?) "The Muppet Wizard of Oz" that aired last year, the first completely Disney owned Muppet production. It wasn't very well recieved by critics or the audience, and nothing has happened with the characters since then outside of a few Pizza Hut commercials.

Getting the Muppets was really Eisner's thing. I don't think anyone inside the company knows what to do with them now, which is a shame. I'm sure that marketing doesn't think that they're "hip" enough, and Disney would probably sanitize any of the traditional manic Muppet "naughtiness" that Jim Henson injected them with in the old days.

CoffeeJedi said:

Disney would probably sanitize any of the traditional manic Muppet "naughtiness" that Jim Henson injected them with in the old days.

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This is why I hope they don't try to do too much with them. I don't want a Disnefied/watered down version of the Muppets. What they can do however, is finish releasing the rest of the seasons from the original Muppet Show. I have been waiting for Season 2 for almost a year now! (I think it is scheduled to come out in Spring 2007)

It really is a shame that more isn't done with the muppets! I think that disney is underestimating the potential of these characters, because a large portion of their visitors could get excited about a new muppets attraction. And goodness know that MGM could use some love.

I would love to see a Muppet Lord of the Rings spoof.

CoffeeJedi said:

The Fraggles and the Sesame Street gang were NOT part of the Muppet sale from Henson.

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Actually, I thought that only Sesame Street was not part of the purchase. I think Disney bought all of the rest of Henson from the Muppets to Fraggles to Bear in the Big Blue House, etc.?

thedisneyfan said:

Actually, I thought that only Sesame Street was not part of the purchase. I think Disney bought all of the rest of Henson from the Muppets to Fraggles to Bear in the Big Blue House, etc.?

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I know they sell the Fraggle Rock merchandise in the Muppet gift shop....

After a little research the only things that Disney bought were the Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House. Fraggle Rock and the rest still belong to the Hensons. However, when the deal was made the Hensons were supposed to work with Disney as consultants and assist in the development of new movies and tv programming for the next four years after the sale. I wonder why much hasn't been done? Maybe Disney doesn't want to pay the Hensons too much for their consulting and will do more when the consulting deal ends? I would love to see a full Muppets parade and another attraction(or two) with the muppets!

There was a rumor of a mobile Muppet labs based on the technology pioneered in Lucky.

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=93533

I would love to see this happen. On a side note, I LOVE FRAGGLE ROCK!!:wave:

I didn't see any Fraggle merchandise when I was at the parks in Sept. I'm not sure how much of a following they have, but I know I would love to see their presence in the parks!

hakunamatata said:

I know they sell the Fraggle Rock merchandise in the Muppet gift shop....

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I will second that - there's definitely a couple shirts and Fraggle plushes.

Master Yoda said:

There was a rumor of a mobile Muppet labs based on the technology pioneered in Lucky.

http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=93533

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Since I never got to see Lucky, I think more of this technology would be great for Disney. However, I question the choice of characters. For muppet fans, using these two crazy scientists may be OK, but I wonder what percentage of Disney visitors are muppets fans. Having very little interest in them, I would be more inclined to watch something in the parks that included the more classic muppets. Miss Piggy and Kermit I would think, would be the ones that could bring some return on the purchase of the characters... but I could be wrong...:veryconfu

Fraggles were there last year, not now. We got Red and Gobo. WHERE IS MY WIMBLEY. I had to get it at Target.

They have released everything on DVD and they just did the wizard of oz remake last year. Piggy was on Good morning american a few week s back.

The Muppets are the reason we are going to the Studios! Both my DH and I are looking forward to MuppetVision 3D. I certainly hope they would do more with the Muppets - IMO they are timeless.

LilRoo714 said:

I will second that - there's definitely a couple shirts and Fraggle plushes.



Since I never got to see Lucky, I think more of this technology would be great for Disney. However, I question the choice of characters. For muppet fans, using these two crazy scientists may be OK, but I wonder what percentage of Disney visitors are muppets fans. Having very little interest in them, I would be more inclined to watch something in the parks that included the more classic muppets. Miss Piggy and Kermit I would think, would be the ones that could bring some return on the purchase of the characters... but I could be wrong...:veryconfu

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To put in my relative Star Wars terms the Professor and Beaker are the Boba Fett of the Muppet's. Even though they are minor characters they are amongst the most popular. I would also assume that Kermit and or Miss Piggy will have there place in the attraction as well.

The reason none of the projects have been reborn is because at the studios MV 3D is still drawing sizable crowds and Disney rather not spend any additional money where it is not necessary right now.

A Fraggle Rock Movie IS going to be made, and it IS being made by the Jim Henson Family.


"There have been rumors about a movie based on Jim Henson's Fraggles for some time and today The Jim Henson Company made it official as they sent out a press release confirming a full-length feature about the Fraggles is in development based on the stars of the 1980's television show "Fraggle Rock." The announcement was made today by Lisa Henson who serves as co-CEO of The Jim Henson Company with her brother Brian Henson.
The untitled film will for the first time take Gobo, Wembley, Mokey, Boober and Red on an adventure outside of Fraggle Rock where they will interact with the strange beings in "outer space" (also known as humans). The treatment is being written by author Ahmet Zappa (The Monstrous Memoirs of a Mighty McFearless) who will also executive produce the project with Brian Henson and Jason . Lisa Henson will produce.
Lisa Henson said, "'Fraggle Rock' has remained a favorite project at our Company and has certainly continued to be loved by its many devoted fans, so we are thrilled to begin work on this project. With its message of celebrating diversity and its ambitious goal of promoting world peace, now is the perfect time to embark on a new Fraggle adventure."
"I'm very excited to be working with The Jim Henson Company on this project," said Ahmet Zappa. "So much of my childhood was spent watching 'Fraggle Rock' ... I never missed an episode! I'm also really looking forward to using music to tell the story; it played such a central role in the original series and truly helped create the 'Fraggle Rock' that we know and love today."
"Fraggle Rock" premiered on HBO in 1983 and over five seasons garnered multiple awards and a global fan following. The show was created by Jim Henson as an international co-production and was adapted for each territory to meet the needs of its audience. By showing cooperation and conflict resolution among the different inhabitants of the Rock (the Fraggles, the Doozers and the Gorgs), the show taught the concepts of mutual respect and peace. Recently, devoted fans petitioned online for a DVD release of the series. The season one box set exceeded expectations and its incredibly strong consumer response led to the successful season two release."

From "RopeofSilicon.com"