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- “The Muppet Show” which premiered in 1978, is finally coming to Disney Plus.
- Disney has released multiple versions of the Muppets over the past decade.
- The jump to Disney plus is a big deal for the series and its legacy.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
It’s time to play the music and light the lights – the original “Muppets Show” is finally coming to Disney Plus on February 19. All five seasons of creator Jim Henson’s favorite felt franchise will be available on streaming for the very first time, elating longtime fans.
Since premiering in 1976, “The Muppet Show” has ingrained itself into the pop culture mythos with a menagerie of chickens, dogs, bears, and frogs. Starting with a simple premise of a charismatic Kermit the Frog putting on a vaudeville-esque show with his friends, the series was a massive success and watched by over 235 million people in 106 countries during its initial run. Since then, the Muppets have become pop culture icons, appearing in 13 movies and six different television shows, captivating an entirely new generation.
“The Muppets are important because we see something of ourselves in them,” Joshua Gillespie, who runs the Muppet History account on Twitter with 175,000 followers, told Insider. “It’s that encouragement to be true to yourself regardless of what you may look like or what your background is that is at the core of who the Muppets are.”
Only seasons one through three were released on DVD before Disney purchased the Muppets in 2004. Since then, there haven’t been any legal ways to watch high-definition episodes on-demand. Many shows released over the past 40 years likely won’t resonate with today’s audience – try showing an episode of “Magnum P.I.” to a teen and see if they can get over the length of Burt Reynolds’ shorts – but “The Muppet Show” is timeless in a way that resonates with adults and children regardless of the era.
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“‘The Muppet Show’ appeals to such a wide audience: kids, teens, adults, weirdos, hipsters, beatniks, cynics, and really anyone who enjoys silliness,” Gillespie said. “So much of The Muppet Show has stayed relevant in modern pop culture even after 45 years.”
Guest stars from the late 70s appeared in droves, delighted at the aspect of showing off their acting or musical chops in ways they normally wouldn't. Some have become classics for fans, like Elton John performing "Crocodile Rock" with a trio of harmonizing reptiles. Others have mostly been forgotten, like an off-key Sylvester Stallone dueting "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off" with a gladiatorial lion.
Though many of the segments of the 70s classic are timeless, some have aged absolutely terribly. Outdated stereotypes and racist caricatures, like those of Native Americans, can be found throughout the series, though Disney does put a disclaimer at the beginning of each episode to warn of poor cultural depictions.
This classic "Muppet Show" is a bit different than the Disney versions released over the past decade. The 2011 "The Muppets" movie still holds up, though its sequel starring Ricky Gervais is a bit more convoluted than charismatic. "The Muppets" television show from 2015 lasted only one season of 16 episodes before getting canceled. Placing the madness made of Muppet mayhem into an "Office" inspired mockumentary just didn't resonate well with the characters. Having Fozzie Bear date a human female or implying that Kermit has a thing for younger pigs just didn't work.
Disney couldn't stop themselves from releasing another mediocre installment and in 2020 released "Muppets Now" on Disney Plus. The show was an even bigger flop, only releasing six episodes on the streaming service. Having RuPaul awkwardly sit across from Kermit as they make small talk at each other does not make compelling content. Unlike the 2015 show, which Gillespie feels was a "unique take," he feels that "the setup was correct but the execution was awful" for the new show.
With a whole new generation of Muppets fans finally able to watch the series that skyrocketed puppetry into the masses, there's a bright future for the franchise. For fans who have resonated with Henson's creations, getting to introduce the show that started their spark to those around them is too good to pass up.
"Deep down we all want to be accepted and loved regardless of if we make it obvious or not, and that's what the Muppets represent for so many people," Gillespie said. "We aren't crime-fighting superheroes or force-wielding Jedi, we're a frog in the swamp wanting to make people happy."