1 of 6 | Sabrina Carpenter joins the Muppets in “The Muppet Show,” on Disney+ Wednesday. Photo courtesy of Disney
The Muppet Show, premiering Wednesday on Disney+, revives the classic variety show with puppets. Celebrities like Sabrina Carpenter, Seth Rogen and Maya Rudolph prove well-suited to meet the Muppets on their professional and satirical level.
Much has not changed since the ’70s. The show alternates between music, sketches and backstage antics.
Kermit the Frog (Matt Vogel) still frantically tries to hold the show together. Miss Piggy (Eric Jacobson) is still trying to dominate with more acts.
And yet, they find something for every Muppet to do in just 30 minutes. The Swedish Chef (Bill Barretta) has a speaking part, and even Rizzo (Bradley Freeman, Jr.) has his own song.
Many more recognizable Muppets and obscure, unnamed ones pass by in the background, along with some clever jokes about random new ones. Statler (Peter Linz) and Waldorf (Dave Goelz) are still attached to their balcony seats and heckle as wittily as ever.
The show acknowledges the passage of time in signature Muppet fashion. Rowlf (Barretta) mocks Kermit’s nostalgic montage music, which also serves to reference the 2011 Muppet movie.
Muppets are good backup to Carpenter singing one of her hits. She interacts with them as intentionally as human dancers, but with more flexibility as light, felt dance partners, including chicken choreography.
Carpenter defers to Miss Piggy as any artist would in the presence of such a legend. She also sings a duet with Kermit to a classic song, as Piggy hilariously tries to crash the performance.
As Muppets work for all ages, Carpenter can still get suggestive, making double entendres with Kermit. Her first song is in a bar with bottles, and backstage she jokes about her celebrity omnipresence, dating life and her team of handlers.
Rogen, also an executive producer, provides some more meta Hollywood references backstage. Rudolph plays along, too.
As a variety show, The Muppet Show balances music, sketches and other acts. Gonzo (Goelz) does another stunt gone wrong, and considering his legacy, the writers came up with a worthy 2026 edition.
Big musical numbers include dozens of Muppets bopping in unison. It may be simple choreography, but to get that many puppets in sync is why they are the best.
As a special, The Muppet Show begs the question of why not keep doing this? Perhaps another weekly edition would be unfeasible, but streaming doesn’t require a weekly timeslot commitment.
Perhaps Disney+ can be home to more one-off Muppet Show specials throughout the year.
Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.
