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 (film) Corddry, Gervais, and Trejo would later appear in "Muppets Most Wanted" in different roles. In 2008, Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller pitched a concept for a Muppets film to Walt Disney Studios executive vice-president of production Karen Falk, and they were offered a deal to develop their script, with David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman of Mandeville Films producing. The news became public in March 2008 when "Variety" first reported that Disney had signed a deal with Segel and Stoller, with Segel and Stoller writing the script and Stoller directing. In June 2008, Segel announced that he had turned in the