Many of legendary puppeteer Jim Henson’s most iconic works were produced in the 1980s, from The Dark Crystal to Labyrinth to The Storyteller. And since practically everything from the ’80s is getting rebooted these days, including Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal, it’s no surprise that a new version of The Storyteller is also on the way.
Neil Gaiman, author of many popular fantasy novels like American Gods, Coraline, and Stardust, has signed on to write a reboot of the series for the Jim Henson Company. “The original The Storyteller was a brilliantly written, directed, and told set of stories. It’s a terrifying and inspiring task to reinvent what Jim Henson did for the golden age of television we are in right now,” Gaiman said in a statement, according to Deadline. “I’m honored that The Jim Henson Company would entrust me with the task of bringing back the storyteller and his magical stories, and sending him out into the world for a whole new round of tales.”
The original Storyteller retold classic and obscure European folktales. The stories were narrated by a prosthetic-laden John Hurt and acted out by human actors and puppets, and is largely remembered today for showcasing some of Henson’s most intricate, impressive, and downright terrifying creature creations.
It’s unclear just how big Gaiman’s role will be in the reboot. While initial reports, and his own statement, suggested he was shepherding the project, Gaiman later took to Twitter to clarify that he was merely writing the series and would not serve as its showrunner. Whether this means he’s writing the entire series himself, which is what it seems like, or is just one of several writers is unknown.
A little news, about something I’m looking forward to writing. (No, not showrunning.) #TheStoryteller @hensoncompany https://t.co/nunW9RLKTc
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) February 19, 2019
Also unknown is when and where the reboot will air, as no networks have yet been pitched on the project (that we know of). One thing we do know, however, is that an effort will be made to bring back as many of the actors from the original series as possible. “We would love to have John Hurt as our Storyteller, but alas, he’s no longer with us. But absolutely the actors from the original Storyteller series, bringing them back would be a marvelous thing to do, and we really did have the cream of the crop,” Gaiman said.
Regardless of where The Storyteller ends up and whom the series brings back, we can be sure of at least one thing: it will definitely be full of terrifying puppets.
