We’ve been extremely curious about the R-rated puppet crime flick The Happytime Murders after a slew of concept artwork was making the rounds a couple years back.
Now, the film has an official lead with Melissa McCarthy as the human (Jamie Foxx was once eyed) and with The Henson Company‘s Brian Henson (son of Jim Henson) directing. Melissa’s Bridesmaids co-star Maya Rudolph will also be in the film. It remains to be seen who is exactly playing the puppet detective, but Maya has extensive voice over experience.
In a world where puppets and humans live side-by-side, the puppet stars of the iconic TV show The Happytime Gang are some of the biggest celebrities around. But off camera, the family-friendly cast leads the kinds of lives that would make a tabloid writer blush. When the stars of “The Happytime Gang” are mysteriously murdered, two mismatched detectives – one a type-A, take-no-prisoners human with a secret, and the other a crass, hard-drinking puppet with a connection to one of the victims – must put aside their huge differences to stop the killings and catch the culprit, while resisting the temptation to murder each other.
Due to the project’s adult material, Happytime Murders will be placed under the Henson Alternative banner.
Thanks to a new production listing we’ve spotted it looks like shooting will begin tomorrow on September 5th in Los Angeles.
Take a look at the rest of the film’s concept artwork floating online.
The Happytime Murders is set for release on August 17th, 2018.
SOURCE: MY ENTERTAINMENT WORLD