The Muppets/Trivia

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


2011 film:

  • Ascended Fanboy: The portrait of Miss Piggy in Kermit's mansion was painted by Big Name Fan Peter Savieri.
  • Creator Backlash: Sort of. Frank Oz – the original performer for Miss Piggy and Fozzie (among others) and probably the best-known Muppeteer who isn't Jim Henson – was offered a role in the film but declined, due in part to his own script treatment being passed over in favor of Segel's and a belief that the latter fails to "respect the characters". Some other, unnamed Muppet veterans have also expressed misgivings over certain elements of the film (e.g. Fozzie's fart shoes).
  • DVD Commentary Features James Bobin (Director), Jason Segel (Gary, and co writer), and Nick Stoller (co-writer). Some nifty tidbits:
    • Jason Segel (Gary) was surprised that one of the choreographers was referring to Mickey Rooney as "Dad" as he told him where to move. Jason thought this was disrespectful of the older actor until he learned the choreographer, Michael Rooney, was in fact Mickey Rooney's son.
    • He also says he found it very hard to keep his eyes open when he looks up into the rain during "Man or a Muppet".
    • AND, the set at Kermit's house where he and Walter sit on the same couch: Jason sat down on the side of the couch where Walter's puppeteer would usually stand underneath, i.e.- a hole (where Walter is "sitting" in the scene in the movie). Jason fell into it. He was unhurt, and it took Amy Adams a long time to stop laughing.
    • The actress who played Walter’s prom date in the photo at the beginning of the film also appears as an extra during the Muppet Telethon and outside the Muppet Theater. Bobin joked that he likes to think that she’s still obsessed with Walter and followed him to Hollywood.
    • Sweetums’ scene at Mad Man Mooney and Sons was filmed at the same location as the car lot in The Muppet Movie.
    • James Bobin made a cameo (only seen from behind) as the director in the booth cuing the beginning of the telethon.
  • Hey, It's That Guy!: In grand Muppet tradition, far too many to count. If we listed them all, we'd be here all day.
  • Promoted Fanboy: Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller are One of Us.
  • Saved From Development Hell: It took over a decade until another theatrical movie was released. A decade.
  • What Could Have Been: Segel mentioned in an interview that during the montage involving Kermit finding a celebrity guest, one of the people they wanted to do was Elmo, who would be shot down by lawyers saying he couldn't join. Then that exactly happened.
    • Gary was originally written as a ventriloquist with Walter as his animate puppet, but The Muppeteers and Disney didn't want the Muppets to be portrayed as puppets rather than living creatures.
    • They forbade the fact that Kermit was a millionaire in the early script and the mansion was waaaayyy bigger. It was rewritten to have the place built by Piggy when they were still together, but they broke up, and Kermit's been taking care of it ever since, so it's shabby and a bit ill-kempt in some places.
    • In early versions of the script Miss Piggy was to become a Lady Gaga type diva after the Muppets disbanded instead of a Vogue editor.
    • The end was different. Originally everything would be orchestrated by Kermit himself for putting the band together again by revealing that Tex would be Kermit in a human suit as part of a massive long-term scheme! But Disney said that ending would be too complicated for kids.
    • Molly Ringwald was written to appear, but ultimately couldn't. She is mentioned as one of the 80's celebrities Kermit calls to try to get a telethon guest.
  • Working Title: The movie was originally gonna be called The Greatest Muppet Movie Ever Made! And boy, did it deliver.
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