Sesame Street Files Lawsuit Against Puppet Film The Happytime Murders

According to The Daily Mail, SESAME STREET has taken legal action against the new film The Happytime Murders, which features puppets partaking in obscene actions.

The producers of the children's TV show filed a lawsuit claiming that the promotion of the film makes unauthorized use of the SESAME STREET mark with the tagline "No Sesame. All Street."

The lawsuit states: 'The threat of irreparable injury posed to Sesame's mark and brand cannot be overstated.'

Sesame Workshop says that it is unclear to audiences that they were not involved in the movie, which features puppets doing drugs, committing murder, working as prostitutes, swearing, gambling and engaging in sexual activity.

Sesame claims that if it is believed that they are involved with the film, they will lose their ability to 'cultivate and maintain TRUST with its audience of parents and young children.'

Sesame Workshop is seeking a permanent injunction preventing the use of its trademark in connection with the films marketing. They also want unspecified damages.

The film is directed by Brian Henson, son of the late Jim Henson, who invented The Muppets, but it is not affiliated with the official Muppets brand.

It stars Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, Joel McHale, and Elizabeth Banks. It opened in the U.S. on August 17.

Read more on The Daily Mail.

To post a comment, you must register and login.