By 
Don’t fuck with the street. That’s the message Sesame Street producers are sending to the makers of Melissa McCarthy’s forthcoming puppet comedy, The Happytime Murders, with a brand-new lawsuit featuring undisclosed damages. Citing the new feature trailer as being “explicit, profane, drug-using, [and featuring] misogynistic, violent, copulating and even ejaculating puppets,” the producers allege The Happytime Murders will harm the family-friendly reputation of Sesame Street. Normally, Sesame Street only implies misogyny, violence, poverty, and drug use. Explicit language has been hidden with cute codewords for decades. Tickle Me Elmo. Hold My Trunk Harder Snuffleupagus. Bert and Ernie Play Doctors, the Extreme Edition. It’s been there all along.
Parodying Sesame Street, or puppets in general, is nothing new. So why the McCarthy-targeted lawsuit now? Apparently, using the tagline NO SESAME. ALL STREET. goes a bit too far. While comedians like Dave Chapelle have been doing the same thing for years, they avoided using the copyrighted name of the material they were parodying in their own productions. Turns out, that was a smart move. Because Sesame Street has been dying to put the hit out on any motherfuckers dumb enough to defame their brand. Or is because they now have the backing of the Notorious HBO?
Either way, it’s a great idea for a movie, and likely to easily outperform McCarthy’s current Life of the Party. While the trailer hits a few marks, it’s the conclusion that really goes for it. But if you’re already showing the silly string orgasmic finale, how much lower can the film go? That’s probably what audiences will pay to find out on August 17 when The Happytime Murders comes all over to theaters. Look for the tagline to be forced to legally drop immediately.
‘Sesame Street’ sues makers of Melissa McCarthy puppet movie ‘The Happytime Murders’ [USA Today]