The Muppet Show Review: A Sequel That’s Back By Popular Demand
Olivia Romesburg ‘27 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
On February 4th, a new age for The Muppets began with a much-anticipated sequel. The Muppet Show (2026) aired on Disney+ on February 4th and ran at 8/9c on ABC. This 32-minute episode serves as a potential pilot to a full revival of The Muppet Show.
For those not familiar with The Muppet Show, it was created by Jim Henson and ran from 1976 to 1981. Though the muppets started appearing in other shows (including Sesame Street) and Muppet specials in 1955, the show itself wasn’t released until 1976. Henson decided he didn’t want the Muppets to be seen as children’s performers and created The Muppet Show to appeal to a more adult audience.
The Muppet Show functions very similarly to TV industry titan Saturday Night Live. Both shows have a guest star each episode. The Muppets themselves function as the regular cast members, similar to SNL. There is also usually a musical number and comedy sketches. A backdoor pilot is when someone tries to bring back a show or create a spin off of a show by airing one episode and seeing how it does before continuing with the project. If this backdoor pilot works and The Muppet Show becomes a regular occurrence, it would function like a late-night show, but air at prime time.
This potential pilot features actors such as Sabrina Carpenter, Maya Rudolph, and Seth Rogen. Rogen is also an executive producer on this project and is a big advocate for bringing the Muppets back full-time.
Sabrina Carpenter kicked off the pilot with a performance of “Manchild” in a bar with Sam Eagle, Camila the Chicken, and the other chickens. Carpenter also sings “Islands in the Stream” with Kermit the Frog, who is later replaced by Miss Piggy, who wants her opportunity in the spotlight. Another iconic segment of the show featured Rizzo the Rat doing a cover of “Blinding Lights” by the Weeknd.
The episode also featured a grand finale performance of “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen. The Muppets frantically decide backstage what they should do to end the show, and Kermit ultimately lands on a group performance of this song. This can be viewed as a call to action for viewers not to let the show stop now.
The backdoor pilot episode left viewers wanting more. Fans are already guessing who the next guest star could be, or asking to see more of certain characters. For example, what happened to Walter? Walter spent The Muppets (2011) and Muppets Most Wanted (2014) becoming a part of the Muppets cast. Walter’s most recent appearance was in Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021), where he was featured as a ghost. Where is he now? Why wasn’t he in the pilot?
If Muppet fans are passionate about The Muppet Show being brought back full-time, it is important that they stream the pilot episode on Disney+, to increase streams. In a world where so many bad things happen, it is time for us to regain a light-hearted piece of media in our society that friends and families alike can enjoy.