Muppets have been all over the blogosphere lately as buzz builds for Jason Segel’s The Greatest Muppet Movie Ever Made and Sesame Street draw adults back in with sharp True Blood and the Old Spice parodies. Audiences can’t get enough of these lovable yet subversive balls of fluff. So it makes sense that Happy Time Murders has finally found a backer.
The puppet-infused noir has been in development over at Jim Henson Co. since 2008, when Todd Berger (The Scenesters) first sold his spec script. Sadly, the Muppets had fallen out of fashion, and Jim Henson Co. had trouble finding backers for the project. But with Muppet mania on the rise again, Lionsgate bought the project, which has Brian Henson (son of Jim and director of Muppet Treasure Island and The Muppet Christmas Carol) attached to direct. THR reports production of the film could begin as early as January – though that depends on how long it takes to secure a male lead.
Plot synopsis courtesy of THR:
“Happytime takes place in a world where humans and puppets co-exist, with the puppets viewed as second-class citizens. When the puppet cast of an ’80s children’s TV show called ‘The Happytime Gang’ begins to get murdered one by one, a disgraced LAPD detective-turned-private eye puppet — with a drinking problem, no less — takes on the case with his former human partner. Think Avenue Q meets L.A. Confidential.
No word on if any of the classic Muppet characters will make an appearance in the comedy noir, but with Brian Henson on board and a intriguing premise that simultaneously reminds me of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Greg The Bunny, and Death to Smoochy, I’m looking forward to more news on the movie’s development.
We’ll keep you posted.
In the meantime, are you excited to see Muppets go noir? Who would you like to see play the human lead?