The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (titled The Muppets' Wonderful Wizard of Oz in pre-release advertising) is a 2005 telefilm directed by Kirk Thatcher and starring Ashanti and The Muppets.
Based on L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and written by The Simpsons writer Tom Martin, the film follows Kansas girl Dorothy Gale as she wishes to break away from her home and become a star. When a tornado hits her area, she and her pet prawn Toto are swept away to the Land of Oz, where she is instructed by the Good Witch of the North to follow the yellow brick road to Emerald City, where the famous Wizard of Oz can help her become a star. Along the way, she meets a Scarecrow, a Tin Thing, and a Cowardly Lion, who accompany her on her trip to wish for a brain, a heart, and courage, respectively.
The film first aired on May 20, 2005 as a special Friday night edition of ABC's The Wonderful World of Disney. The Muppets' Wizard of Oz was directed by Kirk Thatcher, a Henson veteran who helmed the Muppets' last television special, It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, which aired on NBC in 2002. The film was produced by The Jim Henson Company in association with Fox Television Studios, Touchstone Television and the Muppets Holding Company.
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In The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, Dorothy Gale (Ashanti) lives with her Auntie Em (Queen Latifah) and Uncle Henry (David Alan Grier) in a trailer park in Kansas. Dorothy has dreams of becoming a famous singer, but when a tornado hits Kansas and Dorothy rushes to save Toto, her prawn (she couldn't afford a dog), she is whisked away to Oz where she meets the four witches (all played by Miss Piggy) and the Munchkins of Oz (the rats). On her way to see the Wizard, she meets the Scarecrow (Kermit), the Tin Thing (Gonzo), and the Cowardly Lion (Fozzie) who all wish to have something given by the wizard. On their way to Emerald City, they are captured by the Wicked Witch of the West (of course, Miss Piggy) and her flying monkeys (other muppets). When they finally make it back to Emerald City, the Wizard is really a man (Jeffrey Tambor) from Hollywood. But he "grants" their wishes, but what they wanted they already had inside (there's a lesson there). When Dorothy finally is back in Kansas, she becomes what she had wanted, a famous singer and on the Muppets Star Search show. Written by Chris Hunter
