Vulture is reporting that the director of The Muppets, James Bobin, and the co-writer of the film, Nicholas Stoller, have been signed to contracts that will have them writing a sequel to the film, presumably with the intent to further spread its liberal, anti-capitalism propaganda. No more details on its plot are available, although it's probably safe to assume that Bobin will return to direct the sequel, as well. The Muppets wasn't any kind of huge success at the box office, topping off at around $150 million worldwide (by comparison, the god-awful Smurfs movie made $560 million), but presumably it was profitable enough to give Disney the impetus to move forward with another one. It helps when Kermit doesn't have to get paid.
Unfortunately, it looks like Jason Segel won't be back to write the second film; Vulture says that this is due to his other work commitments, as he has a few movies coming out this year (including Five-Year Engagement and Jeff, Who Lives At Home), as well as his work on How I Met Your Mother. Still, it's difficult to see why he wouldn't make time to pitch in on the script for this, considering it was largely his and Stoller's passion to see a new Muppets movie that got the film off the ground. Maybe he's sure it's in good hands?
Apparently Segel might come back to actually star in the presumed sequel, if he likes the script, and it'd be hard not to imagine that he'd make up whatever he wants to say on set anyway if that transpires. We'll know sometime next year, I'd imagine, assuming that everyone can fit the project into their busy schedules. Really, I just want to know if Bret McKenzie will be coming back; the movie worked because it had a great script, obviously, but the songs were really outrageously amazing. You have to figure that they'll try to bring him back sometime later in the process, but that Oscar's going to increase his asking price. I could give or take more Amy Adams, though.
So a bit torn on this news, because the rest of the people behind the last film are very talented & I'm sure they can make a fun Muppets movie. But no Jason?
Maybe its nostalgia talking, I felt like the older Muppet movies were generally more intelligent and less about constantly singing.
It needs to be more Muppets and less non-Muppets. The old Muppet movies were great because humans were guest stars in wacky roles and the Muppets were the driving action/humor, but in the new movie it was like the Muppets were in supporting roles.
That's a shame. Segel is a great writer. And Brett McKenzie is a great songwriter. Maybe if his asking price is too high because of the Oscar win, the other half of FOTC Jemaine Clement could do it.
I really didn't think the movie was well-written, or at least, the parts involving the humans were terrible. In the sequel, they should focus more on the muppets because that was what worked the best in the movie (last fifteen minutes of the movie saved it).
I can kind of see where Segal is coming from: He's an actor who had a dream to write a Muppet movie, now that he did that he wants to move on. It's likely that Disney would like to turn the film into a flagship franchise and I'm guessing Segal doesn't want to be tied to these characters for the next ten years of his life.
Wow those Muppets vs Smurfs numbers make me so depressed. The third chipmunks movie also did $331. Which translates to a lot of terrible parents out there.
As long as they can get Jason Segal back the movie will still be great because as you said he would still improv and change some scenes on set
Yeah that'd be nostalgia. While they had a lot of dialogue, they were all intensely musical (save for the last one before this modern version, the one with Jeffrey Tamborn).
@Vincemaster said:
AFIAK Jemaine didn't write the music all that much, though he did write a lot of the lyrics and the script.
I'm kind of torn on this. Because on the one hand I thought that Segal got the humor of the Muppets and understood them, but at the other time there were too many times in that movie I had to think "Jason Segal, this movie is not about you and Amy Adams, stop trying to make it about you."
This is not necessarily a bad thing. The first three Muppet movies had different writing teams but each with a member from the previous group. The Muppet Movie from 1979 was written by Jack Burns and Jerry Juhl. For the sequel, The Great Muppet Caper (1981), Burns was out but Juhl remained and he was joined by Tom Patchett, Jay Tarses and Jack Rose. Finally, for The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984), Juhl and Rose bowed out leaving the task to just Patchett and Tarses. These are the three best Muppet movies I believe and each had a changing set of writers. If the follow up to 2011's The Muppets has James Bobin and Nick Stoller on the writing staff plus someone to replace Jason Segel, then it will be following in the tradition of those earlier films. New talent with fresh ideas can be a benefit in these circumstances.
The Muppets was an amazing film in my opinion, I've never left a kids film happier in recent years from a cinema (except for Toy Story 3 that is). I can't wait for the sequel when it comes out, and although I'll miss Jason Segal's presence if he doesn't show (or if he doesn't write), the film itself will probably be good.
I'd rather have them make a Muppet themed movie instead of a sequel. Ala Muppet Treasure Island.
WOW REALLY..... There's no hope for mankind