Over thirty years have passed since The Great Muppet Caper was released, so it’s about high time that Jim Henson’s puppets got to undertake yet another wild romp around the globe. That’s exactly what happens in Muppets Most Wanted, which picks up immediately after the conclusion to The Muppets, with Kermit the Frog and his merry band of performers (Miss Piggy, Gonzo the Great, etc.) having reunited and regained their popularity after having (nearly) faded into obscurity.
So, what’s next for the intrepid Muppets? Well, with their careers rejuvenated, the furry comrades set out to perform to sold-out theater audiences all over Europe. However, that plan doesn’t work out so well, since their tour manager – a fellow by the name of Dominic Badguy (it’s French) played by Ricky Gervais – has ties to a criminal mastermind named Constantine, who recently escaped from a high-security Russian prison – and just happens to bear an uncanny resemblance to Kermit, no less (minus a distracting mole on his cheek, anyway).
Muppets Most Wanted features Muppets director James Bobin at the helm, drawing from a screenplay that he co-wrote with Nicholas Stoller; who, as it were, also co-penned The Muppets with Jason Segel. Neither the How I Met Your Mother actor nor his Muppets human costar, Amy Adams, will be returning for the sequel – for anything more than a fleeting cameo that is – but that shouldn’t be a problem, judging by the sheer amount of Muppet goodness in the newly-released U.S. and international trailers for MMW.
The Muppets certainly has a lot of heart thanks to Segel and Stoller, but perhaps the one significant (read: that which bears repeating) criticism that’s been made of the film is that it spends a little too much time waxing nostalgic about Muppets – not enough time letting the eponymous characters do their own thing, as the story unfolds. Fingers crossed, Muppets Most Wanted will turn out as heartfelt and sincere as its predecessor, considering that the trailer footage guarantees that Muppet-style gags, zany musical numbers and running jokes will very much be offered in plentiful amounts.
Indeed, there are several great Muppet comedy beats in the MMW theatrical previews to date, whether it’s Scooter and the chickens performing “Moves Like Jagger” in the original teaser or Danny Trejo (Machete Kills) doing his best Fozzie impersonation in the full trailer. Plus, we have Tina Fey doing her best worst Russian accent, Ty Burell as an Interpol agent – who can’t resist comparing his badge size to CIA agent Sam the Eagle’s (ahem) – and cameos from fan-favorites like Tom Hiddleston (Thor: The Dark World) and Christoph Waltz (The Zero Theorem), among many others. Everybody’s feeling alright, for sure.
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Muppets Most Wanted opens in U.S. theaters on March 21st, 2014.
