# Muppets Now
**Muppets Now** is an American improvised comedy streaming television series starring the Muppets, produced by The Muppets Studio as its first unscripted series and its first original series for Disney+. The six-episode season premiered on July 31, 2020, with new episodes weekly through September 4, 2020.[1](https://press.disneyplus.com/media-kits/muppets-now) • [2](https://epguides.com/MuppetsNow/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | Unscripted, improvised comedy in short-form segments with celebrity guests[3](https://www.thewrap.com/muppets-now-short-form-series-to-debut-on-disney-in-2020/) |
| Premise | Scooter rushes to meet delivery deadlines and upload the Muppets' brand-new streaming series while the rest of the gang throws obstacles, distractions, and complications at him[4](https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-68535859-3cb9-47cc-8427-5190d255b07b?msockid=18399175f5fa69050cc387c7f407688c) |
| Season | 6 episodes, July 31 to September 4, 2020, Disney+; status canceled/ended[2](https://epguides.com/MuppetsNow/) |
| Rating and genres | TV-PG; comedy, variety, kids & family[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now) |
| Critical scores | 70% Tomatometer and 47% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes; Metascore 68 on Metacritic[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now) • [6](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/) |
| Main performers | Matt Vogel (Kermit the Frog), Eric Jacobson (Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal), Dave Goelz (Gonzo, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew), Bill Barretta, David Rudman (Scooter), Peter Linz (Joe the Legal Weasel)[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now) |
## Spoilers
### Format and premise
The show is a series within a series about the Muppets putting on a show, this time a streaming series built from a variety of segments. The framing device follows Scooter, the harried producer, in post-production as he uploads video files of the sketches to the streaming service while fielding input from production, legal, the cast, and Kermit.[9](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/scooter-muppets-now-interview-exclusive/) • [10](https://tv.apple.com/us/show/muppets-now/umc.cmc.7fweo4zax7wvf7n099rc6dek) The performers described the approach as essentially unscripted, going with what happened in the moment.[9](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/scooter-muppets-now-interview-exclusive/)
**Recurring segments.** The season's segments gave established characters their own formats: [Miss Piggy](https://www.edgepedia.org/miss-piggy) became a lifestyle guru with her blog *Lifestyle with Miss Piggy*; Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker took science to the streets in *Muppet Labs Field Test*; the [Swedish Chef](https://www.edgepedia.org/swedish-chef) engaged in culinary combat with challengers in *Økėÿ Døkęÿ Køøkīñ*; and Muppet interviewers sat down with celebrity icons in their own fields in *Mup Close & Personal*.[4](https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-68535859-3cb9-47cc-8427-5190d255b07b?msockid=18399175f5fa69050cc387c7f407688c) A listings guide summarizes the mix as improvised comedy consisting of a game show segment, a cooking show segment, and a talk show segment.[2](https://epguides.com/MuppetsNow/)
### Episodes
The six episodes aired weekly on Disney+:[2](https://epguides.com/MuppetsNow/)
1. "Due Date" (July 31, 2020)
2. "Fever Pitch" (August 7, 2020)
3. "Getting Testy" (August 14, 2020)
4. "Sleep Mode" (August 21, 2020)
5. "The I.T. Factor" (August 28, 2020)
6. "Socialized" (September 4, 2020)
Episode loglines from the Disney+ press kit show the season's running gags. In the premiere, Kermit inadvertently alerts the gang that they are about to go live, unleashing last-minute notes and revisions, while Miss Piggy tries a beauty treatment with [Taye Diggs](https://www.edgepedia.org/taye-diggs) and Kermit talks multitasking with RuPaul. Later episodes introduce Joe the Legal Weasel's focus-group requirement, a molé-sauce cook-off against [Danny Trejo](https://www.edgepedia.org/danny-trejo), a kalbi bowl collaboration with chef [Roy Choi](https://www.edgepedia.org/roy-choi), and Pepe the King Prawn's improvised game show.[1](https://press.disneyplus.com/media-kits/muppets-now) Other guests during the season included Linda Cardellini, Seth Rogen, and Aubrey Plaza.[6](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/)
## Development and announcement
Disney+ ordered the series, announced at the D23 expo on August 23, 2019, as a short-form unscripted series with celebrity guests set to premiere in 2020.[3](https://www.thewrap.com/muppets-now-short-form-series-to-debut-on-disney-in-2020/) D23's own preview described a show rich with what audiences had always loved about the Muppets, featuring surprising guest stars and silliness, while noting that Joe from Legal had kept details under wraps.[7](https://d23.com/stream-on-disney-plus-2020/) The announcement followed a period in which the franchise's recent television efforts included the 2012 film *The Muppets*, its sequel *Muppets Most Wanted*, and a short-lived mockumentary-style ABC series canceled after one season.[3](https://www.thewrap.com/muppets-now-short-form-series-to-debut-on-disney-in-2020/)
A later industry account reported that the short-form vignettes with celebrity guests were originally meant for YouTube and social media, and were repackaged into half-hour-long episodes for Disney+.[8](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/tv-shows/history-of-muppets-under-disney-new-show-value/)
## Cast and production
The puppet cast paired veteran performers with the characters they had long performed: Matt Vogel as [Kermit the Frog](https://www.edgepedia.org/kermit-the-frog), Eric Jacobson as Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and Animal, Dave Goelz as Gonzo and Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Bill Barretta as the Swedish Chef, Pepe the King Prawn, and [Rowlf the Dog](https://www.edgepedia.org/rowlf-the-dog), David Rudman as Scooter and Beaker, and Peter Linz as Joe the Legal Weasel and Walter.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now) • [6](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/) Executive producers were Bill Barretta, Sabrina Wind, David Lightbody, Leigh Slaughter, and Andrew Williams.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now)
## Reception
Critics rated the season favorably on balance. Rotten Tomatoes recorded a 70% Tomatometer from 50 reviews against a 47% Popcornmeter audience score.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now) Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 68, based on 27 critic reviews, with a mixed user score of 5.9.[6](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/) Reviewers quoted in aggregation noted both the show's corporate sheen and its anarchic Muppet spirit, and one critic called it the purest Muppet content in a very long time and a spiritual successor to the 1970s *Muppet Show*.[11](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now/s01) • [12](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/critic-reviews/) A Time review framed the series as ideal comfort viewing for 2020, with Scooter evolved from stage manager into a showrunner scrambling to upload each episode.[13](https://time.com/5870228/muppets-now-review-disney-plus/)
The series ran for a single season and is listed as canceled/ended.[2](https://epguides.com/MuppetsNow/) Retrospective commentary has placed it among the franchise's attempts to revive the variety format, with one critic writing that Muppets Now tried to update *The Muppet Show* for the streaming era and, in that reviewer's view, did a fine job at something that was not strictly necessary.[14](https://time.com/7362191/the-muppet-show-2026-review-abc/)
## References
1. [Muppets Now Media Kit, Disney+ Press](https://press.disneyplus.com/media-kits/muppets-now)
2. [Muppets Now, a Titles & Air Dates Guide, epguides.com](https://epguides.com/MuppetsNow/)
3. ['Muppets Now' Short-Form Series to Debut on Disney+ in 2020, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/muppets-now-short-form-series-to-debut-on-disney-in-2020/)
4. [Muppets Now, Watch Full Episodes, Disney+](https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-68535859-3cb9-47cc-8427-5190d255b07b?msockid=18399175f5fa69050cc387c7f407688c)
5. [Muppets Now, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now)
6. [Muppets Now Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/)
7. [Everything We Can't Wait to Stream on Disney+ in 2020, D23](https://d23.com/stream-on-disney-plus-2020/)
8. [Disney's Muppets Lost a Generation of Children. Can It Make a Comeback?, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/tv-shows/history-of-muppets-under-disney-new-show-value/)
9. [Muppets Now's Scooter Talks About Trying to Deliver a Show During Muppet Mayhem, ComicBook.com](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/scooter-muppets-now-interview-exclusive/)
10. [Muppets Now, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/show/muppets-now/umc.cmc.7fweo4zax7wvf7n099rc6dek)
11. [Muppets Now: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/muppets_now/s01)
12. [Muppets Now critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/muppets-now/critic-reviews/)
13. ['Muppets Now' on Disney+ Is Ideal Comfort Viewing, Time](https://time.com/5870228/muppets-now-review-disney-plus/)
14. [The Muppet Show Is Exactly What We Need Right Now, Time](https://time.com/7362191/the-muppet-show-2026-review-abc/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Children's and family franchise series*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license