It's been twelve years since Kermit the Frog and his Muppet pals graced the big screen in Muppets from Space. Since that time the Jim Henson created characters have made several appearances on various TV shows and direct-to-video movies such as It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie and the dreadful The Muppets' Wizard of Oz.
Fans of the lovable and iconic felt covered characters created by the late Jim Henson will soon be able to laugh at their grand adventures in the upcoming new movie, The Muppets. Disney has released the first official poster and trailer for The Muppets, which we have for you below.
The new original story was conceived by Jason Segel (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) and announced at the Disney fan convention D23 in 2009. Since that time, and keeping with Muppet movie tradition, a slew of actors have been attached to make cameo appearances in the film including Emily Blunt (Looper), John Krasinski (The Office), Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover II), Neil Patrick Harris (The Smurfs), Danny Trejo (Machete), Ricky Gervais (Stardust), Katy Perry, Billy Crystal and many more.
Not much about the film is told in this teaser trailer for The Muppets, so here is the official synopsis provided by Disney:
On vacation in Los Angeles, Walter, the world's biggest Muppet fan, and his friends Gary (Jason Segel) and Mary (Amy Adams) from Smalltown, USA, discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to raze the Muppet Theater and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets' former stomping grounds. To stage The Greatest Muppet Telethon Ever and raise the $10 million needed to save the theater, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways: Fozzie now performs with a Reno casino tribute band called the Moopets, Miss Piggy is a plus-size fashion editor at Vogue Paris, Animal is in a Santa Barbara clinic for anger management, and Gonzo is a high-powered plumbing magnate.
Now check out the trailer below:
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What The Muppets teaser trailer lacks in length it more than makes up for in classic Muppet humor - the keyword here being "CLASSIC" humor. In a time when Hollywood seems intent to update beloved movies and make classic characters dark and "gritty" (see the new Snow White films for a recent example), Disney, along with writer Jason Segel and director James Bobin (The Flight of the Conchords), have wisely decided to keep Kermit the Frog and the rest of the performers from The Muppet Show the same lovable characters families and fans have known for years.
Another classic aspect of every Muppet movie are the songs: The Rainbow Connection, I Hope the Somethin' Better Comes Along, I'm Going to Go Back There Someday and Movin' Right Along. Fortunately, the musical numbers will remain a big part of The Muppets as Bret McKenzie (The Flight of the Conchords) wrote some of the songs in the film, including the big Muppet-style opening and closing numbers.
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The Muppet Wikipedia page list over 850 different Muppet characters who appeared in some fashion throughout the Muppets' 35 year history. While it's highly unlikely all of them will be in The Muppets movie fans will surely see series regulars Gonzo, Rowlf the Dog, Fozzie Bear, Animal, the Swedish Chef and, of course, Miss Piggy and her beau Kermit the Frog.
The Muppets opens in theaters November 23rd, 2011.
Follow me on Twitter - @Walwus - and tell me your favorite Muppets character.
Source: Fandango,