Jason Segel has been passionate about the Muppets longer than he's been on 'How I Met Your Mother.' Now that he's written and is directing their big-screen comeback, he brought that passion to 'Late Night with Jimmy Fallon' (Weeknights, 12:37AM on NBC).For the first table read, Segel revealed that the Muppets themselves were brought in to perform their parts, so it wasn't just the voice actors sitting around. "Kermit comes out," he said. "He goes, 'Hi-ho' and then I said I needed a five minute break."
At that moment, it must have been like the culmination of a dream for Segel, who said in his youth he'd thought of Kermit as the everyman, even moreso than Jimmy Stewart and Tom Hanks. Now, he'd taken his passion and love of the Muppets, and he was bringing about their revival.
Even better, Fallon noticed on a picture he'd brought a new Muppet. "A tech Muppet?" he asked, referencing the smart phone the puppet was holding.
"He was born in my brain," Segel said, admitting he'd created the newest member of the cast. "His name is Walter. He's the sweetest Muppet of all time." His enthusiasm and passion for the Muppets is so palpable and infectious, you can't help but get excited about this project every time he's talking about it. Their long-awaited return appears to be in the right hands.
