Muppet Guys Talking: A New Documentary About The Muppets

Muppet Guys Talking is a new documentary from Frank Oz, aka the guy behind Yoda and Miss Piggy.

More and more great movie news is coming out of SXSW, and the latest exciting reveal was that there is a Muppet documentary!

Muppet Guys Talking: Secrets Behind the Show the Whole World Watched is a new doc from director Frank Oz that sees the reunion of five guys who worked with Jim Henson.

Oz himself stars in the film. (He is best known for performing as Yoda and Miss Piggy). The cast of the film also features puppeteers Dave Goelz (Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew), Fran Brill (Prairie Dawn), Jerry Nelson (Count von Count), and Bill Barretta (Rowlf, Pepe the King Prawn).

The five former co-workers sat down for a 10-hour chat in 2012 about their experiences working with Henson, how they shaped their characters and different experiences on set.

Oz shared a story about working with John Denver for a bit on The Muppets. Denver was performing a campfire singalong and the puppeteers were packed in together underneath the stage with a propane tank. Oz recounts the experience, saying “Holy sh*t, this thing could blow and destroy all of us.” Who knew being a Muppet could be so dangerous!

A good chunk of the documentary is the five puppeteers talking about working with the late, great Jim Henson. Henson was a pioneer in film and television, creating iconic characters for Sesame Street and the Muppets. But while some Hollywood legends garner reputations for being demanding or difficult to work for, there is no such drama around Henson. The group describes him as generous, inclusive, hard-working and kind.

Henson’s openness gave the puppeteers a lot of opportunities to make their own choices with their characters, infusing bits of their own personalities and coming up with ideas.

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It seems like working on the Muppets was a genuinely fun and fulfilling experience for the crew. Oz says the success of the film was that they “took a chance on sweetness.”

There’s no word yet on when Muppet Guys Talking will be available to the public.