Netflix acquires film rights to ‘Sesame Street’

"Sesame Street", which combines puppetry, live-action, and animation, was created by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett and released in 1969

Los Angeles: Streaming platform Netflix has acquired the film rights to the children’s educational television show “Sesame Street”.

Following the successful acquisition of the show’s streaming rights, the streaming service will now produce a new feature-length “Sesame Street” film. It will be produced by Jonathan Eirich and Michael Lofaso of Rideback, according to the entertainment news outlet The Hollywood Reporter.

The top contenders competing to acquire the television and feature film rights to the Sesame Street franchise were Netflix and Universal.

“Sesame Street”, which combines puppetry, live-action, and animation, was created by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett and released in 1969. It is considered one of the most culturally significant and widely viewed children’s programs in global television history and has been adapted into over 20 independent international versions made into local languages and cultures.

The show is set in a fictional, diverse urban neighbourhood, and uses a mix of comedy, music, and over 50 characters, including Elmo, Abby Cadabby and Bert and Ernie, to teach preschoolers foundational academic subjects such as the alphabet and numbers.