The Muppets film, "Muppets from Space", released by Columbia Pictures in 1999. In 2000, Henson was sold to EM.TV & Merchandising AG for $680 million. However, EM.TV was plagued with financial problems and the Henson family re-acquired the company in 2003, with the exception of the rights to the "Sesame Street" characters, which had been sold by EM.TV to Sesame Workshop. Fourteen years after initial negotiations began, Disney acquired the Muppets intellectual property from the Jim Henson Company for $75 million on February 17, 2004. The acquisition consisted of the Muppets and "Bear in the Big Blue House" properties, as well as
The Muppets (TV series) a fictional late-night talk show starring Miss Piggy airing on ABC after "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" "The Muppets" serves as a parody of other mockumentary-style series, such as "The Office", "Modern Family", and "Parks and Recreation" by employing the same single-camera setup filming style with the implication of a documentary crew filming everyone. The series stars Muppet performers Steve Whitmire, Eric Jacobson, Dave Goelz, Bill Barretta, David Rudman, Matt Vogel, and Peter Linz in multiple roles. The series marks the characters' first ongoing prime-time network television series since "Muppets Tonight" was canceled in 1998. "The Muppets" was picked up by ABC,