The Muppets the Muppets film and television library. Exceptions included the "Sesame Street" characters, which were previously sold to Sesame Workshop; the "Fraggle Rock" characters, which were retained by Henson; and the distribution rights to "The Muppets Take Manhattan", "Muppets from Space", and "Kermit's Swamp Years," which were retained by Sony Pictures Entertainment. Following the acquisition, Disney formed The Muppets Holding Company (later known as The Muppets Studio), a wholly owned subsidiary responsible for managing the characters and franchise. As a result, the term "Muppet" became a legal trademark of Disney; under license from Disney, Sesame Workshop continues to use the term
The Muppets Disney Theatrical Productions revealed in 2013 that a live show based on the Muppets was in active development and that a 15-minute show had been conducted by Thomas Schumacher to see how the technical components would work. "Muppet Moments", an interstitial television series, premiered on Disney Junior in April 2015. The short-form series features conversations between the Muppets and young children. After the release of "Muppets Most Wanted", Disney was interested in expanding the Muppets' presence across various media platforms, particularly in television. Discussions for a new primetime series began internally within the Muppets Studio. By April 2015, Bill Prady