With Christmas quickly approaching, the time has some where many families cuddle up on the couch and watch their favorite holiday movie. One of the most popular of these classic Christmas flicks is The Muppet Christmas Carol, which reimagines the classic Charles Dickens novel with a cast of muppets and other furry puppet friends. But there are also human cast members, and the incomparable Michael Caine surprisingly starred as Ebenezer Scrooge himself. Considering Michael Caine's long and prestigious career, it seems unlikely that he would take a job alongside Kermit the Frog's Bob Cratchit. But now we finally know why Caine took the part, and it's enough to melt your heart.
Michael Caine recently sat down with GQ to talk all about The Muppet Christmas Carol. The 1992 classic musical movie is beloved by many families, and family is exactly why the legend signed up for the project in the first place.
To start, my daughter, who is the mother of my grandchildren, was then seven, and she had never seen me in a movie. I had never made a movie that a 7-year-old can see. And so a man mentioned the Muppets and I said, 'That's it! I'll do that!' And it's A Christmas Carol, it's a fabulous tale! You'll be old Scrooge, it'll be marvelous! And it was absolutely perfect at that time for what I wanted. I could make it, and my daughter could see it. That's why I did it. And it was lovely.
There you go, ladies and gents. Michael Caine joined the cast of The Muppet Christmas Carol so that he could finally share one of his movies with his daughter. The actor hadn't exactly been in family friendly adventures at that point, but there isn't anything more family friendly than the Muppets. Except maybe in their recently cancelled television series.
It's no wonder that The Muppet Christmas Carol is a movie which Michael Caine looks back on fondly. Because now that a decade or two have passed, the film serves an entirely different function for Caine. While he originally made it to share it with his daughter, he now gets to do the same with his grandchildren. This movie musical is a part of many family's Christmas traditions, and it apparently brings together the actor's family was well. And isn't that what Christmas is all about?
The Muppet Christmas Carol is a 1992 live action musical comedy which comically retells the story of A Christmas Carol. It is full of beautiful music which never failed in making my childhood self giddy with excitement over the big day. The Muppets play the main characters; Kermit and Miss Piggy play the Cratchets, Fozzie Bear plays Scrooge's former employer (hilarious named Mr. Fozziwig), Gonzo narrates as Charles Dickens, and the heckling duo Waldorf and Statler play the Marley brothers.
The Muppet Christmas Carol is currently available on HBO, as well as home release.
