New Muppets series for Disney+ has been scrapped

A planned new Muppets series for Disney's new streaming platform Disney+ has been axed, according to reports.

Deadline says that the show was set to be called Muppets Live Another Day, and would have been a scripted comedy series from Frozen star and comedian Josh Gad, and Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, creators of ABC's fairy tale drama series Once Upon A Time.

The show would have taken place after the events of the 1984 classic Muppet movie, Muppets Take Manhattan, in which Kermit was tasked with getting the disbanded Muppets back together to go in search of a missing Rowlf.

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But Deadline cites an unspecified 'discrepancy' between the writers' vision for the show and the 'top brass' at Disney.

The Muppets have, sadly, experienced mixed fortunes in recent years.

Comeback film The Muppets, written by and starring Jason Segel in 2010, was a critical smash, though it did not quite achieve glory at the box office (it made just $165 million worldwide).

The sequel, Muppets Most Wanted starring Ricky Gervais, Ty Burrell and Tina Fey, positively bombed, making only $80 million from a $50 million budget, a huge loss after advertising and marketing costs are added.

Then a 'mockumentary' style TV show on the Disney-owned ABC, also called The Muppets, failed to take, despite decent reviews, with the network axing it after a single series.

Not all is lost for Jim Henson's beloved puppet troupe, however.

Another series, an unscripted show called Muppets Now, featuring star guests, is still being developed for Disney+, and should be set for air in 2020.