A new talk show from the Jim Henson Co. starring an alien puppet called Earth to Ned will be coming to Disney+. The series was created by the same group behind Netflix’s Dark Crystal: The Age of Resistance. The upcoming Disney streaming service is already working with The Jim Henson Company on the return of The Muppets with a new series called “Muppets Now”.
This isn’t the only puppet based talk-show coming to streaming either. As part of their deal with Sesame Street, HBO Max will be launching, The Not Too Late Show with Elmo, a family-centric live-action take on a late-night talk show.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Earth to Ned, which was picked up straight-to-order, follows an alien and his lieutenant as they interview celebrity guests. Disney+ describes the comedy follows Ned, a blue-skinned alien, and his lieutenant Cornelius, who were sent to scout Earth for an eventual invasion — but instead became obsessed with popular culture. Now they host a talk show, broadcast from the bridge of their spaceship hidden deep underground, where they interview our most precious commodity — celebrities — to talk about Ned’s current pop culture obsessions.
“Disney has a long history of giving audiences a glimpse at faraway lands and bringing new talent into the spotlight. We believe Ned is next in line,” said Dan Silver, VP Unscripted Originals at Disney+. “We’re lucky to have the talents of the Jim Henson Co. and the folks at Marwar Junction Productions helping Ned, Cornelius, BETI and the Clods to execute and fully realize their vision. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Ned for promising to entertain us, rather than destroy us all.”
Disney+ will launch on November 12th at just $6.99 a month, nearly half the price of Netflix ($12.99). The service includes four simultaneous streams, unlimited downloads, 4K streaming across a range of devices including Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Chromecast, iOS, Android, & Web.
While they’ll launch with a deep catalog including the entire Disney Vault, Pixar and Star Wars libraries, MCU films like Captain Marvel, and the entire 30 seasons of The Simpsons — they will have six original series on day one. Next year will bring MCU’s Falcon & The Winter Soldier and Pixar’s Forky Asks a Question.
The first year will include 25 new original series, 10+ movies, 7,500 past episodes, 100 recent movies, and 400 library titles including the entire Disney Vault. Previously, many of those new releases and library films would have gone to Netflix as part of a distribution deal that started in 2016.