Showing posts with label the muppets. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the muppets. Show all posts

Friday, February 24, 2012

AMY ADAMS RETURNS TO MUSICAL COMEDY WITH “THE MUPPETS”

Coming off Oscar-nominated performances in such dramas as “Doubt” and “The Fighter,” Amy Adams returns to the musical comedy genre (which she previously took on in “Enchanted”) with Walt Disney Pictures' “The Muppets.”

             In the film, Walter, the world’s biggest Muppet fan, his brother Gary (Jason Segel) and Gary’s girlfriend, Mary (Adams), discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to raze Muppet Studios and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets’ former stomping grounds. To stage a telethon and raise the $10 million needed to save the studio, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit the Frog reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways.

             Mary is a valued shop teacher in Smalltown, USA—at least if the number of apples on her desk are any indication. She is Gary’s longtime girlfriend who often finds herself playing third wheel to Gary and his brother, Walter.
             Mary shares Gary and Walter’s sweet, innocent disposition, but she’s growing weary of sharing her boyfriend with Walter. She can’t help but hope for a magical proposal during their Los Angeles vacation, but her plans are derailed when news of Muppet Studios’ pending demise spur the trio into expressly non-marriage-proposal action.

             Adams was called on for the role—in a way that was impossible to miss, says the actress. “Jason and Kermit sent me an invitation to be in Disney’s `The Muppets' — they asked if I’d read the script and consider the role of Mary. Kermit was a big part of my decision. I don’t like to tell Jason that ’cause he’s a little sensitive that I might be partial to Kermit, but I am. 

             “I was really into the Muppet movies, the TV shows, the songs,” continues Adams. “It’s like every kid’s dream—when you’re playing with your stuffed animals, you wish they’d come to life and talk to you. And now, the Muppets are real. It’s so great to have that physical presence in front of you.” 

             Adams is currently filming Zack Snyder’s “Man of Steel,” the “Superman” reboot for Warner Bros., in which she plays Lois Lane. The film also stars Henry Cavill as Superman and Russell Crowe, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner and Michael Shannon.
             Adams starred in Nora Ephron’s “Julie & Julia,” reuniting with co-star Meryl Streep, having previously starred opposite Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman in John Patrick Shanley's Oscar®-nominated film "Doubt," which earned Adams her second Academy Award® nomination.

             Adams starred in Kevin Lima’s “Enchanted” opposite Patrick Dempsey and Susan Sarandon. “Enchanted” is a romantic fable that mixes live action with CG animation for Disney. The film earned her a Golden Globe® nomination for Best Actress.

             For her role in Phil Morrison’s “Junebug” in 2005, Adams earned her first Academy Award® and SAG Award® nominations. She won an Independent Spirit Award, Broadcast Film Critics Association Award, National Society of Film Critics Award, a San Francisco Film Critics Society Award, and the Breakthrough Gotham Award. Adams also won the Special Jury Prize for Acting at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival for her role as the pregnant, childlike Ashley, who is awestruck by the arrival of her glamorous sister-in-law.

             Adams’ other film credits include Shawn Levy’s “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” opposite Ben Stiller; Christine Jeffs and Karen Moncrieff’s critically acclaimed “Sunshine Cleaning” opposite Emily Blunt and Alan Arkin; Mike Nichols’ “Charlie Wilson’s War” opposite Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman; Bharat Nalluri’s "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day” opposite Frances McDormand; and Steven Spielberg’s “Catch Me if You Can” with Leonardo DiCaprio. 

“The Muppets” is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International through Columbia Pictures.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

SNEAK PEEK: “THE MUPPETS”

He’s green. He has crazy friends, flippers, a penchant for pigs…and one of the most recognizable singing voices. And he’s coming to neighborhoods everywhere in 2012!

             Kermit the Frog is back on the big screen, and this time, he’s teaming up with Jason Segel, Amy Adams, Chris Cooper and newcomer Walter, plus the whole Muppet gang, for a brand-new, big-screen adventure in Disney’s “The Muppets.”

             “It’s funny, upbeat and full of laughs for everyone…frogs, pigs, bears…even people,” says Kermit. “For new fans, it’s a chance to see the Muppets in action on the big screen. And for old fans it’s a chance to get together with old friends…and get a little crazy together.”

             On vacation in Los Angeles, Walter, the world’s biggest Muppet fan, his brother Gary (Segel) and Gary’s girlfriend, Mary (Adams), from Smalltown, USA, discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Cooper) to raze Muppet Studios and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets’ former stomping grounds. To stage a telethon and raise the $10 million needed to save the studio, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways: Fozzie now performs with a Reno casino tribute band called the Moopets, Miss Piggy is a plus-size fashion editor at Vogue Paris, Animal is in a Santa Barbara clinic for anger management, and Gonzo is a high-powered plumbing magnate.

             Disney’s “The Muppets” is directed by James Bobin (“Flight of the Conchords,” “The Ali G Show”) and produced by the Academy Award®-nominated team David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman (“The Fighter,” “The Proposal”) with a screenplay written by Segel & Nicholas Stoller (“Get Him to the Greek”). Bret McKenzie, who created, co-wrote, executive-produced and starred in the hit HBO television series “Flight of the Conchords,” is the music supervisor as well as the writer/producer of three original songs.

             Honoring the Muppet tradition, celebrity cameos include Donald Glover, Leslie Feist, Alan Arkin, Kristen Schaal, Eddie “PiolĂ­n” Sotelo, Ken Jeong, James Carville, Rico Rodriguez and Judd Hirsch. “There are more cameos, but I can’t talk about them,” says Kermit. “One of the ways the Muppets get big stars to be in our movies is by promising not to tell anyone about it—besides, it’s more fun when you’re watching the movie and are surprised by who shows up.”

Opening soon across the Philippines, “The Muppets” is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International through Columbia Pictures.