Disney+ recently released the trailer for the upcoming documentary Jim Henson: Idea Man about the iconic puppeteer. Two-time Academy Award winner Ron Howard directed the film.

The documentary will premiere on the streaming platform on May 31. The movie is described as taking the audience “us into the mind of this singular creative visionary, from his early years puppeteering on local television to the worldwide success of Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, and beyond. Featuring unprecedented access to Jim's personal archives, Howard brings us a fascinating and insightful look at a complex man whose boundless imagination inspired the world.”

Jim Henson Company CEO Lisa Henson told Comicbook.com, “If there was going to be a definitive documentary about Jim Henson, we had hoped it would be in the hands of an accomplished filmmaker. Ron Howard is both a creative and personality match for my father, unlike anyone else we could have contemplated.”

Jim Henson, Puppet Master

Howard said, “It was sort of anarchy on the outside, but underneath it, there was always a smart idea — a witty point to make, an observation about the world. To see that evolve through the medium of puppetry and television, and then on into movies, was so interesting to me. I felt like you could actually observe a lot about entertainment, what entertains us and why, through his journey.”

Henson is best known as the creator of The Muppets and co-creator of Sesame Street. He also wrote and directed 1982's The Dark Cystal and 1986's Labyrinth among many others. The multi-hyphenate artist also provided the voices of iconic characters such as Kermit the Frog and Ernie.

In 1989, he co-founded Muppets Inc. with his wife Jane Nebel. This later became The Jim Henson Company. Henson died in 1990. A year after his death, he was award a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and became a Disney Legend in 2011. In 2004, Disney bought the rights to the Muppets in 2004.

Muppets, Actually

After his death on May 16, 1990, two public memorials were conducted: one at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Manhattan a few days after and the other on July 2 at St. Paul's Cathedral in London.

Harry Belafonte sang Turn the World Around, which he debuted on The Muppet Show. Big Bird as performed by Carooll Spinney later went on stage and sang Bein' Green, Kermit's signature song. Other puppeteers sang a medley of Henson's favorite songs in their characters' voices. The legendary puppeteer asked that no one who attended his memorial wear black.

In 2003's Love Actually, the scene of the band singing All You Need Is Love during Peter (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Juliet's (Kiera Knightley) wedding was inspired by Henson's memorial. The film's writer and director, Richard Curtis, attended the funeral described by Life Magazine as “an epic and almost unbearably moving event.”

Jim Henson: Idea Man is produced by Imagine Documentaries, Disney Branded Television under Disney Original Documentary. The documentary also features interviews of fans of Henson's work, as well as footage from Wilkins and Wontkins Commercials that were previously lost.