Henson family denies rumors they're selling Henson Company Lot to Scientologists

Members of the Henson family have issued a statement this weekend, shooting down rumors that The Jim Henson Company was planning on selling its Los Angeles studio lot to the Church Of Scientology. Per Deadline, the Company—which, every story about this issue must be quick to remind you, no longer owns the Muppets, although they do still have custody of the Fraggles—said through a spokesperson that “In regards to recent rumors about the sale of the La Brea studio lot, the Henson family is not in any business dealings with the Church of Scientology, and that organization is not in consideration as a potential buyer of the property.”

Normally, we wouldn’t necessarily spill ink on a hypothetical L.A. real estate deal—especially one that isn’t, y’know, happening—but the Henson brand remains so beloved, and Scientology’s so… “Completely fine in a way that nobody needs to call a lawyer about”… that there’s a weird charge in contemplating the Church owning part of the company’s history. (Worth noting, too, that the Jim Henson Company Lot was acquired in 1999, having formerly been Charlie Chaplin Studios, so it’s not like Jim Henson himself ever actually worked there.) Despite all that, it still somehow felt a little icky (in a way nobody needs to call a lawyer about) to imagine the Henson legacy becoming intermingled with that of L. Ron Hubbard, even in a very tangential way, and so there’s a weird relief in being told the sale isn’t going through.

That being said, the Lot is for sale, if you’re in the market for production offices that presumably once held at least a few meetings about the making of Farscape. (Okay, shit, now we kind of want it.) The family’s statement went on to say that, “It is still the family’s intention to move The Jim Henson Company to a new location it can share with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, but at this time the family is not in escrow with any buyer.” (There are actually two extant Creature Shop locations these days; the New York location does most of the hand-puppet stuff, while a Burbank location does larger builds; we’re guessing the Company intends to merge its living space with the California shop.)