Disney and the Jim Henson Company will work together on Earth to Ned, an unscripted talk show-style comedy series for Disney+. Earth to Ned will star extraterrestrial creations from the Jim Henson company; the alien puppets will interview celebrity guests for the streaming platform. Disney+ officially launches November 12, but Earth To Ned won’t premiere until some time in 2020.
When Earth to Ned makes its debut, it won’t be the only unscripted series on Disney+. In fact, it won’t even be the only unscripted show to feature puppets interviewing celebrity guests. The Jim Henson Company (one of the many, many entertainment studios now owned by Disney) is also producing Muppets Now, which will feature Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, and other Muppets interviewing Hollywood stars.
According to THR, Earth to Ned is an unscripted interview show starring a blue-skinned alien named Ned alongside his lieutenant Cornelius. The duo arrive on earth as the advance party for an alien invasion, but they instead become bewitched by the planet’s pop culture charms. Naturally, the aliens decide to start a late-night-inspired talk show, which gives them direct access to earth’s finest celebrity specimens. As time goes on, Ned and Cornelius will move further away from the planned invasion, a setup that will be familiar to fans of Third Rock From The Sun and Coneheads. The pop culture-loving aliens will also be joined by an artificial intelligence named BETI and several cloned living objects of destruction, or CLODS. From the bridge of their spaceship, the invading aliens will interview earth celebrities. Marwar Junction Productions will co-produce the series for Disney+. Read on for a statement from Disney Vice-President Dan Silver about the show, followed by an official screenshot from Earth to Ned.
Puppetry is an ancient art form, but 2019 is a great year to be a fan of puppets. Yes, Disney recently scrapped a new scripted Muppets show (the ironically titled Muppets Live Another Day). And, yes, the Muppets brand has struggled since the Academy Award-winning The Muppets hit theaters in 2011. However, Earth to Ned and Muppets Now will soon give Disney+ viewers their puppet fix, courtesy of the artists at Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. On top of that, the Jim Henson Company recently received widespread critical acclaim for their Netflix series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, which combined old-school puppetry with modern-day CGI special effects. And based on this promo image, the Earth to Ned puppets have more in common stylistically with the Dark Crystal creatures than the Muppets.
“Disney has a long history of giving audiences a glimpse at faraway lands and bringing new talent into the spotlight. We believe Ned is next in line. We’re lucky to have the talents of the Jim Henson Co. and the folks at Marwar Junction Productions helping Ned, Cornelius, BETI and the Clods to execute and fully realize their vision. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Ned for promising to entertain us, rather than destroy us all.”
Because Earth to Ned and Muppets Now won’t launch with Disney+ in November, Muppets fans will have to wait a little while longer to stream Kermit, Ned, and the other creations from Jim Henson’s Creature Workshop. If the shows succeed, the Muppets really will live another day.
Source: THR
