New 'Muppets' trailer is both inspirational and celebrational

Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, and Kermit the Frog appear to be getting the big-screen treatment they deserve in 'The Muppets' this holiday season.

Credit: Walt Disney Pictures

Did I really just hear a bunch of chickens sing Cee-Lo's "F**k You"?

God bless The Muppets.

I haven't posted every one of the many parody trailers for this film because, while I admire the effort by Disney, I'm more interested in the film they're really releasing.  And now that we've got the new and much longer trailer for "The Muppets," there's a point that the preview raises that explains some of the thinking behind those parody trailers.

"You're not famous anymore."  Hard thing to believe for anyone who was raised in a Jim Henson world, but it's somewhat true these days.  While "Sesame Street" is still a powerhouse brand, the Muppets themselves have been on simmer for a while now.  Over the last few years, ever since I was on set for the "Dracula" musical segment at the end of "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," I've been having an ongoing conversation with Jason Segel about the Muppets.  He's a huge fan, and making a new movie involving the classic Muppets has been a dream of his.

What's lovely is that he not only got the chance to make the film, but that he found a kindred spirit in James Bobin, best known for his work as a director on "Flight Of The Conchords."  Bobin is also a full-blown Muppet freak, and working with Segel and his co-writer Nicholas Stoller, he seems like the right guy to return the Muppets to their proper place in pop culture prominence.

The new trailer, embedded below, is a huge step in the right direction.  Everything about this looks like it's right.  The sense of humor, the way celebrities are used, the dewey-eyed optimism of the whole thing.  Somewhere, I'd like to believe that Jim Henson is smiling right now: