Best tv shows like The Muppet Show
Last updated March 2024
Looking for tv shows related to The Muppet Show? Use your expertise to guide others towards tv series and films you've watched that they may enjoy too. Help expand the group of people recommending videos to one another. We value your input!
Plot Summary:
The Muppet Show is a comedy-variety television series produced by puppeteer Jim Henson and featuring The Muppets. After two pilot episodes produced in 1974 and 1975 failed to get the attention of America's network heads, Lew Grade approached Henson to produce the programme for his ATV Associated Television franchise in the UK. The show premiered on 5 September 1976, and five series were produced until 15 March 1981 at ATV's Elstree Studio just north of London, lasting 120 episodes. The series shows a vaudeville or music hall-style song-and-dance variety show, as well as glimpses behind the scenes of such a show. Kermit the Frog stars as a showrunner who tries to keep control of the antics of the other Muppet characters, as well as keep the guest stars happy. The show was known for outrageous physical slapstick, sometimes absurdist comedy, and humorous parodies. Each episode also featured a human guest star. As the show's popularity rose, many celebrities were eager to perform with the Muppets on television and in film. Many of the puppeteers also worked on Sesame Street. Muppet performers over the course of the show include Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, Dave Goelz, Fran Brill, Eren Ozker, Steve Whitmire, Louise Gold, Kathryn Mullen, Karen Prell, Brian Muehl, Bob Payne, and John Lovelady. Jerry Juhl and Jack Burns were two of the show writers.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 26000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, feel good, exciting, sitcom, funny, light, retro, sketch comedy, slapstick, not serious
Best tv shows and movies like The Muppet Show (1976):
Similar in 81%
Sesame Street: 20 and Still Counting (1989)
Plot Summary:
Bill Cosby takes us on the tour to Sesame Street as the show goes on it's 20th Anniversary. It had interviews of the cast and crews of the show and memories of the show. It also features a multi-language version of some classic Sesame Street songs, Such as "Rubber Ducky".
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 96
Genere: Comedy, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 48 min
Plot tags: feel good, humorous, educational, semi serious
Similar in 80%
Super Dave (1987)
Plot Summary:
Super Dave is a Canadian/American variety show starring and hosted by the fictional character Super Dave Osborne. It ran from 1987 to 1991 on Showtime in the US and the Global Television Network in Canada. Super Dave was spun off from the sketch comedy series Bizarre, which featured Bob Einstein in recurring roles, including Super Dave. Super Dave made his first appearance on the 1972 TV series The John Byner Comedy Hour. Einstein then regularly played the character on the short-lived 1976 variety show Van Dyke and Company starring Dick Van Dyke.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 717
Genere: Comedy
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: parody, humorous, realistic, not serious, sitcom, spoof, sketch comedy
Similar in 81%
Yo Gabba Gabba! (2007)
Plot Summary:
Yo Gabba Gabba! is an American children's television show that airs on the Nick Jr. cable network in the United States and the Nick Jr. networks in the United Kingdom & Ireland, Italy, France and Australia as well as Treehouse TV network in Canada and RTE2 on RTÉjr in Ireland. The show stars five costumed toys-come-to-life and their friend DJ Lance Rock, who explore a single topic in each episode through songs and short storylines in the half-hour program while teaching children life and social skills. It also encourages viewers to move along with and dance with the characters in the program. The show is noted for its indie-culture guest stars and bands, and for drawing visual inspiration from 8-bit video games and H. R. Pufnstuff. Created by Christian Jacobs and Scott Schultz, the show is produced by The Magic Store Productions and Wild Brain. The series premiered August 20, 2007 on Nickelodeon as part of its Nick Jr. block, and began broadcasting in reruns on February 23, 2008 on the Nick Jr. TV Channel. On April 30, 2008 the television show received a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design/Styling.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 23 min
Plot tags: humorous, not serious, feel good, surreal, exciting, weird
Similar in 79%
Muppets Tonight (1996)
Plot Summary:
Muppets Tonight is a live-action/puppet television series created by Jim Henson Productions and featuring The Muppets. Much like the "MuppeTelevision" segment of The Jim Henson Hour, Muppets Tonight was a continuation of The Muppet Show, set in a television studio, rather than a theater. It ran on ABC from 1996 to 1998 and reruns ran on Disney Channel from 1997 to 2002. As of 2013, it is the last television series to star The Muppets characters.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Music
Country: France, USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: exciting, feel good, humorous, not serious
Similar in 77%
Sesame Street (1969)
Plot Summary:
Sesame Street is a long-running American children's television series created by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett. The program is known for its educational content, and creativity communicated through the use of Jim Henson's Muppets, animation, short films, humor, and cultural references. The series premiered on stations on November 10, 1969 to positive reviews, some controversy, and high ratings.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Music, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: educational, retro, feel good, humorous, semi serious, sketch comedy, hispanic, vintage, weird, 2d animation
Similar in 75%
Perfect Strangers (1986)
Plot Summary:
Perfect Strangers is an American sitcom that ran for eight seasons from March 25, 1986, to August 6, 1993, on the ABC television network. Created by Dale McRaven, the series chronicles the rocky coexistence of midwestern American Larry Appleton and his distant cousin from eastern Mediterranean Europe, Balki Bartokomous. Originally airing on Tuesdays for the short six-episode first season in the spring of 1986, it moved to Wednesdays in prime time in the fall of 1986. It remained on Wednesdays until March 1988, when it was moved to Fridays. The show found its niche there as the anchor for ABC's original TGIF Friday-night lineup, though it aired on Saturdays for a short time in 1992.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Comedy, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, game show, offbeat, feel good, realistic, not serious, slapstick, buddy comedy
Similar in 77%
Bosom Buddies (1980)
Plot Summary:
Bosom Buddies is an American sitcom starring Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari created by Robert L. Boyett, Thomas L. Miller and Chris Thompson. It ran from 1980 to 1982 on ABC and in reruns in the summer of 1984 on NBC. The show features the misadventures of two single men, working in creative advertising, struggling in their industry while disguising themselves as women in order to live in the one apartment they could afford. Gender stereotypes and male/female interpersonal relationships were frequent themes. The show became known for its quirky humor and its frequent use of improvisation, especially between stars Hanks and Scolari. Though the show started out with good ratings, it failed to hold the public's interest and was canceled after two seasons.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, buddy comedy, humorous, not serious, realistic, witty, retro, slapstick, cult classic
Similar in 83%
So Random! (2011)
Plot Summary:
So Random! is an American Disney Channel musical sketch comedy series that premiered on June 5, 2011. It was announced as an independent series after Demi Lovato left the parent series, Sonny with a Chance. The series features the actors who acted in Sonny with a Chance, besides Lovato: Tiffany Thornton, Sterling Knight, Brandon Mychal Smith, Doug Brochu, and Allisyn Ashley Arm along with other featured actors who recur in the series. The series premiere was watched by 4.1 million viewers. On May 2, 2012, Tiffany Thornton indicated that the series had not been renewed for a second season.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: humorous, funny, light, feel good, captivating, entertaining, satirical, sitcom, parody, not serious
Similar in 76%
Mr. Show with Bob and David (1995)
Plot Summary:
Mr. Show with Bob and David is an American sketch comedy series starring and hosted by Saturday Night Live writer/actor Bob Odenkirk and stand up comedian/actor David Cross. It aired on HBO from November 3, 1995 to December 28, 1998. Cross and Odenkirk introduced most episodes as heightened versions of themselves, before transitioning to a mixture of live sketches and pre-taped segments. The show featured a number of alternative comedians as both cast members and writers, including Sarah Silverman, Paul F. Tompkins, Jack Black, Tom Kenny, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Brian Posehn, Jerry Minor, Scott Aukerman, and Dino Stamatopoulos. It was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards, as well as a Golden Satellite Award.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 27 min
Plot tags: sketch comedy, sitcom, surreal, funny, absurd, cult classic, parody, offbeat, humorous, witty
Similar in 89%
Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! (2007)
Plot Summary:
Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! is an American sketch comedy television series, created by and starring Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, which premiered February 11, 2007 on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim comedy block and ran until May 2010. The program features surrealistic and often satirical humor, public-access television–style musical acts, bizarre faux-commercials, and editing and special effects chosen to make the show appear camp. The program featured a wide range of actors, spanning from stars such as Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, David Cross, Bob Odenkirk, Will Forte and Zach Galifianakis, to alternative comedians like Neil Hamburger, to television actors like Alan Thicke, celebrity look-alikes and impressionists. The creators of the show have described it as "the nightmare version of television.".
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Comedy, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 11 min
Plot tags: sketch comedy, humorous, surreal, parody, not serious, witty, spoof, psychedelic, absurd, dark comedy
Similar in 90%
Pee-wee's Playhouse (1986)
Plot Summary:
Pee-wee's Playhouse is an American children's television program starring Paul Reubens as the childlike Pee-wee Herman. The show was developed from Reubens' popular stage show and the one-off TV special The Pee-wee Herman Show, produced for HBO, which was similar in style but featured much more adult humor. In 2004 and 2007, Pee-wee's Playhouse was ranked #10 and #12 on TV Guide's Top Cult Shows Ever.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, mysterious, absurd, offbeat, feel good, surreal, not serious, weird, campy, cult film
Similar in 81%
The Muppets (2015)
Plot Summary:
The Muppets return to primetime with a contemporary, documentary-style show. For the first time ever, a series will explore the Muppets’ personal lives and relationships, both at home and at work, as well as romances, breakups, achievements, disappointments, wants and desires. This is a more adult Muppet show, for “kids” of all ages.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Comedy, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 21 min
Plot tags: mockumentary, sitcom, erotic
Similar in 82%
Follow That Bird (1985)
Plot Summary:
Big Bird is sent to live far from Sesame Street by a pesky social worker. Unhappy, Big Bird runs away from his foster home, prompting the rest of the Sesame Street gang to go on a cross-country journey to find him.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: melancholic, light, sweet, entertaining, touching, semi serious, feel good, talky, road movie, crying
Similar in 86%
LazyTown (2002)
Plot Summary:
Things are upside-down in LazyTown. Stephanie, an optimistic girl with bright pink hair, comes to live in LazyTown and meets a zany mix of townspeople, including the world’s laziest super-villain, Robbie Rotten. Fortunately for Stephanie, LazyTown is also under the watchful eye of Sportacus, an athletic, super-active, slightly-above-average hero, who runs, jumps, flips and flies to the rescue in his futuristic AirShip. Sportacus always manages to save the day and to help the kids of LazyTown foil Robbie’s latest lazy schemes. The citizens of Lazytown learn the importance of things like eating right and exercising from the ultra-athletic superhero, Sportucus, who must stop the evil plots of Robbie Rotten, who hates physical activity, among other things.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Music, Sport
Country: Iceland
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, entertaining, exciting, light, captivating, colorful, anime, educational, colourful, nostalgic
Similar in 86%
Fraggle Rock (1983)
Plot Summary:
The Fraggles are a fun-loving community of creatures who live in a subterranean fantasy land where they love to play, sing and dance their cares away, sharing their world with the tiny Doozers and the giant Gorgs. The series teaches empathy and tolerance and encourages children to understand people different from themselves.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Musical
Country: Canada, UK, USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: retro, humorous, semi serious, nostalgic
Similar in 76%
Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)
Plot Summary:
Big Bird worries when Oscar tells him that if Santa Claus can't fit down the chimney on Christmas Eve, nobody would get presents.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Music, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, christmas special
Similar in 82%
The Jim Henson Hour (1987)
Plot Summary:
The Jim Henson Hour is a short-lived television series that aired on NBC in 1989. It was developed as a showcase for The Jim Henson Company's various puppet creations, including the popular Muppet characters. Only nine of the twelve episodes produced managed to air on NBC before the low-rated program was cancelled. Two later aired on Nickelodeon in 1992 and 1993, and the final episode never aired in the US, but it did air in the UK in 1990.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 524
Genere: Comedy, Family, Fantasy
Country: USA
Duration: 48 min
Plot tags: anthology, exciting, feel good, humorous, semi serious
Similar in 86%
The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984)
Plot Summary:
When the Muppets graduate from Danhurst College, they take their song-filled senior revue to New York City, only to learn that it isn't easy to find a producer who's willing to back a show starring a frog and a pig. Of course, Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy won't take no for an answer, launching a search for someone to take them to Broadway.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Musical, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: humorous, slasher, fantasy adventure, exciting, feel good, not serious, funny, light, romantic, clever
Similar in 80%
The Great Muppet Caper (1981)
Plot Summary:
Kermit and Fozzie are newspaper reporters sent to London to interview Lady Holiday, a wealthy fashion designer whose priceless diamond necklace is stolen. Kermit meets and falls in love with her secretary, Miss Piggy. The jewel thieves strike again, and this time frame Miss Piggy. It's up to Kermit and Muppets to bring the real culprits to justice.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Musical, Mystery
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: avant garde, fantasy adventure, exciting, feel good, humorous, stylized, not serious, funny, light, clever
Similar in 81%
Muppets Most Wanted (2014)
Plot Summary:
While on a grand world tour, The Muppets find themselves wrapped into an European jewel-heist caper headed by a Kermit the Frog look-alike and his dastardly sidekick.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 37000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Family, Musical, Mystery
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: exciting, humorous, light, entertaining, absurd, colorful, feel good, not serious, funny, visually appealing
Similar in 83%
The Muppet Movie (1979)
Plot Summary:
Kermit the Frog is persuaded by agent Dom DeLuise to pursue a career in Hollywood. Along the way, Kermit picks up Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and a motley crew of other Muppets with similar aspirations. Meanwhile, Kermit must elude the grasp of a frog-leg restaurant magnate.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: funny, humorous, uplifting, slasher, avant garde, grindhouse, fantasy adventure, happy, aesthetic, exciting
Similar in 88%
Bear in the Big Blue House (1997)
Plot Summary:
Bear in the Big Blue House is a television program for adults and children produced for the Playhouse Disney channel by Mitchell Kriegman and The Jim Henson Company. It first aired in 1997. In 2004, The Jim Henson Company sold the Bear in the Big Blue House franchise to The Walt Disney Company. The characters and show are currently owned and operated by the Disney subsidiary, The Muppets Studio.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: educational, nostalgic
Similar in 77%
Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas (1977)
Plot Summary:
A poor otter family risks everything for the chance to win the cash prize of a talent contest for Christmas.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Musical
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 48 min
Plot tags: christmas special, gothic, touching, offbeat, feel good, humorous, semi serious
Similar in 80%
A Muppet Family Christmas (1987)
Plot Summary:
In this one-hour Christmas special, Fozzie Bear surprises his mother Emily on Christmas Eve by bringing the entire Muppet gang to her farm to celebrate the holidays. Doc and his dog Sprocket, who had planned a quiet Christmas, end up joining the Muppets in their holiday activities and preparations.The Sesame Street regulars, including Big Bird, Bert, Ernie and others, join the festivities, but to Kermit's dismay, the only one missing is Miss Piggy, who has been caught in a snowstorm.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Musical
Country: USA
Duration: 47 min
Plot tags: christmas special, feel good, humorous, not serious
Similar in 88%
Dinosaurs (1991)
Plot Summary:
Dinosaurs follows the life of a family of dinosaurs, living in a modern world. They have TV's, fridges, microwaves, and every modern convenience.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, light, captivating, entertaining, retro, epic, bad ending, game show, not serious
Similar in 85%
Mr. Bean (1990)
Plot Summary:
Mr Bean turns simple everyday tasks into chaotic situations and will leave you in stitches as he creates havoc wherever he goes.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 130000
Genere: Comedy, Family
Country: UK
Duration: 25 min
Plot tags: humorous, sitcom, not serious, realistic, feel good, light, funny, retro, game show, hilarious
Similar in 86%
Muppets from Space (1999)
Plot Summary:
When Gonzo's breakfast cereal tells him that he's the descendant of aliens from another planet, his attempts at extraterrestrial communication get him kidnapped by a secret government agency, prompting the Muppets to spring into action. It's hard to believe Gonzo's story at first, but Kermit and friends soon find themselves on an epic journey into outer space filled with plenty of intergalactic misadventures.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: humorous, light, entertaining, feel good, not serious, exciting, slasher, fantasy adventure, funny, parody
Similar in 78%
ALF (1986)
Plot Summary:
A furry alien wiseguy comes to live with a terran family after crashing into their garage.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, sitcom, cliffhanger, game show, hilarious, feel good, not serious, light, funny, offbeat
Similar in 79%
It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie (2002)
Plot Summary:
The owner of a bank (Miss Bitterman) wants to own the Muppet Theatre so she can build a nightclub over it. After she tricks Pepe into giving her the only copy of the contract between her father and the Muppets, she changes it so the Muppets have very little time to pay a debt they owe. Meanwhile, the Muppets are trying to put on a Christmas show. After the Muppets are confronted by Bitterman, they make a lot of sacrifices to save up so they can keep the Theatre.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Musical
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: humorous, christmas special, witty, stylized, feel good, not serious, spoof, fantasy adventure, exciting, parody
Similar in 89%
The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
Plot Summary:
A retelling of the classic Dickens tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, miser extraordinaire. He is held accountable for his dastardly ways during night-time visitations by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and future.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 67000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Musical
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: funny, christmas special, humorous, talky, feel good, not serious, exciting, sentimental, light, slasher