Walter (Muppet)
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Walter is a
Muppet The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an surreal humor, absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential humor, self-referential style of Variety show, variety-sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are ...
character that first appeared in the 2011 film ''
The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses ...
''. Performed by
Peter Linz Peter Linz (born June 28, 1967) is an American puppeteer. His most prominent role is being the performer for the character Walter who was introduced in the 2011 feature film ''The Muppets''. Since 1991, Linz has performed on ''Sesame Street'', ...
, he is one of the film's main characters, along with
Kermit the Frog Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created and originally performed by Jim Henson. Introduced in 1955, Kermit serves as the everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably ''Sesame Street'' and ''The Muppet Show'', as well ...
and the rest of the Muppets. Walter also appears in the 2014 sequel film, ''
Muppets Most Wanted ''Muppets Most Wanted'' is a 2014 American musical crime comedy film and the eighth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Directed by James Bobin and written by Bobin and Nicholas Stoller, the film is a sequel to ''The Muppets'' (2011) and sta ...
''; though still a major character, he plays a smaller role than he does in the previous film. The character was received positively by most critics and fans, praising his storyline in ''The Muppets''. Screen Rant's Ben Kendrick wrote, "Even Walter, despite being the new Muppet on the block, holds his own alongside his non-human friends, and will no doubt be a fan-favorite for years to come." E! referred to the addition of Walter as "an inspired choice". Betsy Sharkey of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' said that Walter "is adorably insecure and a good addition to the house that
Jim Henson James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...
built, which included so many iconic characters."


Biography

During his adolescence in Smalltown, Walter frequently watched ''
The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as a s ...
'', collecting
memorabilia A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...
and finding the cast as a source of inspiration during his upbringing—which is why he often refers to himself as the "world’s biggest Muppet fan". While on vacation in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, Walter assists the Muppets in regaining both their popularity with the public and control of their acquired studios from oil baron Tex Richman. Later in the film, Walter starts to question whether he is
man A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromo ...
, which he was believed to be his entire life, or actually a Muppet, which was why he always felt a strong connection towards them. This emotion eventually leads him to sing the
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
-winning song, "
Man or Muppet "Man or Muppet" is a song from Disney's 2011 musical comedy film ''The Muppets'', written by singer-songwriter Bret McKenzie. Performed by the film's main characters, Gary (Jason Segel) and Walter (Peter Linz), the song also features Bill Barret ...
", where the human version of Walter is portrayed by actor
Jim Parsons James Joseph Parsons (born March 24, 1973) is an American actor. From 2007 to 2019, he played Sheldon Cooper in the CBS sitcom '' The Big Bang Theory''. He has received various awards, including four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead ...
. The scene is pivotal to the character's arc as it resolves Walter's internal issues with himself. The character's solo act of whistling in the telethon's finale was performed by musician
Andrew Bird Andrew Wegman Bird (born July 11, 1973) is an American indie rock multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Since 1996, he has released 16 studio albums, as well as several live albums and EPs, spanning various genres including swing music ...
. At the conclusion of the film, Walter deduces that he is a Muppet, adopts
whistling Whistling without the use of an artificial whistle is achieved by creating a small opening with one's lips, usually after applying moisture (licking one's lips or placing water upon them) and then blowing or sucking air through the space. The a ...
as his sole talent and joins the group as their newest member. A 2010 article from ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' described Walter by writing;
Meet the newest member of the Muppet repertory company: Walter, a sweet, slightly naive twenty-something every-puppet who, in the movie, is the best friend and roommate of
Jason Segel Jason Jordan Segel ( ; born January 18, 1980) is an American actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Marshall Eriksen in the CBS sitcom '' How I Met Your Mother'', as well as for his work with director and ...
's character, Gary. Both Gary and Walter are die-hard Muppet fans. "Walter is the kind of guy who faints when he sees Kermit," amesBobin says. Of course, Walter's Muppet fandom is complicated by the fact that he is a Muppet himself. "Walter has a bit of a self-confidence issue because he's the only person like him that he's seen aside from the Muppets," Segel explains. "His dream is to meet the Muppets and be around people who are like him." When Gary and Walter learn that the Muppet Theater is in danger of being torn down, they set out to save it by reuniting Kermit, Piggy and the entire troupe to stage an old-fashioned extravaganza. —''Entertainment Weekly''


Development


Characterization

In the process of conceptualizing Walter,
Nicholas Stoller Nicholas Stoller (born March 19, 1976) is a British-American filmmaker. He is known mainly for directing the 2008 comedy '' Forgetting Sarah Marshall'', its 2010 spin-off/sequel, ''Get Him to the Greek'', '' The Five-Year Engagement'', '' Neighbo ...
said; "We wanted a simple character, who was pure innocence and pure enthusiasm as an entry point for kids who aren't necessarily as familiar with The Muppets as their parents."
Jason Segel Jason Jordan Segel ( ; born January 18, 1980) is an American actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Marshall Eriksen in the CBS sitcom '' How I Met Your Mother'', as well as for his work with director and ...
, added: "He's a stand-in for me, a hardcore Muppet fan who wants to know what the hell happened to them." He also revealed a shared ambition with the character; "He sets out to make them as famous as they once were — which was sort of our goal in making this movie." Stoller and Segel's screenplay had described Walter as the adopted younger brother of Gary and had set Walter's age to be approximately 30 years old. Much to the producers' surprise,
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
granted them the creative license to conceive a new Muppet without any initial
marketing research Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data about issues relating to marketing products and services. The goal is to identify and assess how changing elements of the marketing mix i ...
, a technique Disney often employs when creating characters for their consumer products franchisees. Segel and Stoller, however, were only responsible for creating Walter's personality and character traits—his physical appearance was crafted by the Muppets Studio and
Puppet Heap Puppet Heap, LLC is a puppet design, fabrication and production company based in Hoboken, New Jersey. The company was founded by artist and designer Paul Andrejco, who previously worked for The Jim Henson Company from 1992 to 2001 and designed th ...
.
Peter Linz Peter Linz (born June 28, 1967) is an American puppeteer. His most prominent role is being the performer for the character Walter who was introduced in the 2011 feature film ''The Muppets''. Since 1991, Linz has performed on ''Sesame Street'', ...
came to the producers' attention after a screenplay
read-through The read-through, table-read, or table work is a stage of film, television, radio, and theatre production when an organized reading around a table of the screenplay or script by the actors with speaking parts is conducted. In addition to the ca ...
, where he assisted fellow Muppet performer
Eric Jacobson Eric Jacobson is an American puppeteer. He is best known for performing Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Animal, and Sam Eagle for The Muppets Studio, as well as ''Sesame Street'' characters Bert, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, and Guy Smiley—all role ...
. The producers called Linz, asking if he were interested in auditioning for the role. Linz, however, did not initially win over the film's producers, and he was asked to audition again. During his second audition, Linz was told to emulate actor
Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera (; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor and musician. He started his career as a child actor, voicing the character of Brother Bear on the children's television show ''The Berenstain Bears'' and portraying a young Chuck B ...
in his demeanor, because the producers wanted Walter to be quiet and shy, similar to the way Cera acts. Linz received the role after completing his second audition, where he improvised dialogue with Segel and performed several music duets, including "
Love Will Keep Us Together "Love Will Keep Us Together" is a song written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. It was first recorded by Sedaka in 1973. American pop duo Captain & Tennille covered the song in 1975, with instrumental backing almost entirely by “Captain ...
". As Walter's characterization became more defined, Linz identified a comparative bond between him and Walter; "The character of Walter hits really close to home for me. I’ve always been an enormous Muppet fan who dreamed of one day working with the Muppets, and that’s basically who Walter is." Producer
Todd Lieberman Todd Darren Lieberman (born February 20, 1973) is an American film and television producer. He founded Hidden Pictures Media in 2022 and won an Emmy for Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers in 2022. He co-founded Mandeville Films and Television with ...
remarked, "The emotional core of the movie is Walter. The idea is that he's not comfortable where he is now but he ends up finding a place where he's comfortable at. That's a really great lesson."


Design

In the screenplay for ''The Muppets'', Stoller and Segel described Walter as having the feel of "an old dishrag" that wore a blue suit. The writers stated that they wanted Walter to be small, because even though he was an adult, he needed to feel like he was "out of place in the human world." Walter's actual height has been recorded as being 18 inches tall. Paul Andrejco, president of
Puppet Heap Puppet Heap, LLC is a puppet design, fabrication and production company based in Hoboken, New Jersey. The company was founded by artist and designer Paul Andrejco, who previously worked for The Jim Henson Company from 1992 to 2001 and designed th ...
, showed the producers 14 different iterations of the basic puppet, each of them different in size and shape. Andrejco and the producers had to choose from 25 different possibilities for color and texture, ranging from "pink and scruffy to orange-y speckly to flat gray". Lieberman spoke about how Walter couldn't be a joke, and said, "At the end of the movie, you want to shed a tear for him when he finds his place."


Appearances

Walter also appeared with the rest of the Muppets on several promotional posters and images. He also appeared several times to promote the film, including appearing on '' Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'', along with
Jason Segel Jason Jordan Segel ( ; born January 18, 1980) is an American actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Marshall Eriksen in the CBS sitcom '' How I Met Your Mother'', as well as for his work with director and ...
. Walter appeared as part of the Muppets ensemble in Cee Lo Green's "
All I Need Is Love ''All I Need Is Love: A Memoir'' is the autobiography of the German actor Klaus Kinski first published 1975 in German under the title "Ich bin so wild nach deinem Erdbeermund" (English: I am so wild about your strawberry mouth). The first translat ...
" in 2012. He also appeared in Kirk Scroggs’ “Tales Of A Sixth-Grade Muppet” book series.


Filmography

* ''The Muppets'' (2011) *''
Lady Gaga and the Muppets Holiday Spectacular ''Lady Gaga and the Muppets Holiday Spectacular'' is a Thanksgiving television special with American singer Lady Gaga and the Muppets. The 90-minute program aired on ABC on November 28, 2013, with guest stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Elton John a ...
'' (2013) (TV) *''
Muppets Most Wanted ''Muppets Most Wanted'' is a 2014 American musical crime comedy film and the eighth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Directed by James Bobin and written by Bobin and Nicholas Stoller, the film is a sequel to ''The Muppets'' (2011) and sta ...
'' (2014) *'' Disney Drive-On with The Muppets'' (2014) (Web) * ''The Muppets'' (2015) (TV) (Presentation Pilot Only) *''The Muppets Take the Bowl'' (2017) *''The Muppets Take the O2'' (2018) *''
Muppets Now ''Muppets Now'' is an American television series produced by The Muppets Studio for the streaming service Disney+. Directed by Kirk Thatcher, the series is an improvisational comedy based on ''The Muppets'' franchise by Jim Henson. It premiere ...
'' (2020) *''
Muppets Haunted Mansion ''Muppets Haunted Mansion'' is a 2021 American puppet supernatural comedy Halloween special based on the Disney properties The Muppets and The Haunted Mansion. It was released on October 8, 2021, via Disney+. It is the Muppets' first Halloween s ...
'' (2021)


References


External links

* at
Disney.com disney.com is a website operated by Disney Digital Network, a division of The Walt Disney Company, that promotes various Disney properties such as films, television shows, and theme park resorts, and offers entertainment content intended for child ...

Walter
on
IMDb IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
{{Authority control Film characters introduced in 2011 The Muppets characters