Since the Sesame Street movie was announced by Warner Bros. Pictures it has only hit bumps in the road, er- street. The long-gestating film finally got some good news though as a new piece of casting information has been revealed. Collider reports that Chance the Rapper is in negotiations to join the upcoming film based on the children’s property, he would join Anne Hathaway who is set to star. To date Chance the Rapper (real name Chance Bennett) has appeared in two live action movie roles, starring in A24’s horror comedy Slice and appearing in Netflix’s Between Two Ferns: The Movie; the Grammy winner also lent his voice to the 2019 remake of The Lion King and the upcoming Trolls World Tour.
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Though unconfirmed the plot for the new film was previously reported by Deadline, who described it as follows: “Big Bird and his Sesame Street friends are mysteriously expelled from their neighborhood, finding themselves in Manhattan. They team up with a plucky history show host Sally Hawthorne who’s on a quest to save her show and prove that Sesame Street actually exists, with obstacles created by the “evil” Mayor, with reasons of his own for keeping Sesame Street hidden from the world.”
It’s unclear what role Chance the Rapper will play, but seems likely that Anne Hathaway will take on the part of Sally Hawthorne. The pair will likely like serve as the human counterparts to the Muppet citizens of the titular neighborhood. Set for a January 14th, 2022 release date, the film is also reportedly a musical movie that will have at least some of its music and lyrics created by Bo Burnham (Eighth Grade).
The Sesame Street Movie will be directed by Jonathan Krisel (Portlandia). The last reported draft of the script was written by Chris Galletta (the first draft was written by Mike Rosolio). Shawn Levy and Michael Aguilar are producing.
This will be the third Sesame Street film to hit the big screen, following 1985’s Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird and 1999’s The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland. The franchise celebrating its 50th anniversary last year after it premiered in 1969. The series is famous for its adorable puppets and educational lessons, with characters like Big Bird, Elmo, Snuffleupagus, Cookie Monster, Oscar The Grouch, Bert, Ernie, and more becoming beloved by children and parents everywhere over the years.
Warnermedia has a major investment in Sesame Street as a whole as new episodes for the show will move to the HBO Max streaming platform in the near future, with even more spin-offs for the popular show in the works. Don’t worry though, new episodes will air on PBS after a brief exclusivity window.
