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 Best Original Song. During the film's publicity campaign, the Muppets appeared in promotional advertisements and in effusive marketing efforts by Disney and were also featured in a promotional video for Google+. In March 2012, the Muppets received a collective star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That year, the Muppets hosted a "Just for Laughs" comedy gala in Montreal. After the successful performance of "The Muppets", Disney announced an eighth film in March 2012, with Bobin and Stoller returning to direct and write, respectively. "Muppets Most Wanted" was released in 2014, and starred Ricky Gervais; Tina Fey; and Ty Burrell.