Does Disney own the Muppets?

Many people have held the misconception that Disney has owned the Muppets for some time. While this is true now, it only became so recently.

In February of 2004, The Walt Disney Company purchased The Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House characters from The Jim Henson Company.

Beginning in 1989, Jim Henson had been in negotiations with Disney for a sale of the company so that he could focus on creative projects without the hassles of running a company. This deal fell through after his death in May of 1990.

Disney distributed The Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island, and its branch Buena Vista Home Entertainment released some Muppet projects, but they were never owned by Disney.

In his book Where Did I Go Right?, Bernie Brillstein (Jim Henson's manager) speaks of a time in the early 1980s, when the Disney company was in management trouble, that he and Jim were considering buying The Walt Disney Company.