Amy Adams returns to musical comedy with 'The Muppets'

MANILA, Philippines - Coming off Oscar-nominated performances in such dramas as “Doubt” and “The Fighter,” Amy Adams returns to the musical comedy genre (which she previously took on in “Enchanted”) with Walt Disney Pictures' “The Muppets.”

In the film, Walter, the world’s biggest Muppet fan, his brother Gary (Jason Segel) and Gary’s girlfriend, Mary (Adams), discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to raze Muppet Studios and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets’ former stomping grounds. To stage a telethon and raise the $10 million needed to save the studio, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit the Frog reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways.

Mary is a valued shop teacher in Smalltown, USA—at least if the number of apples on her desk are any indication. She is Gary’s longtime girlfriend who often finds herself playing third wheel to Gary and his brother, Walter.

Mary shares Gary and Walter’s sweet, innocent disposition, but she’s growing weary of sharing her boyfriend with Walter. She can’t help but hope for a magical proposal during their Los Angeles vacation, but her plans are derailed when news of Muppet Studios’ pending demise spur the trio into expressly non-marriage-proposal action. Adams was called on for the role—in a way that was impossible to miss, says the actress. “Jason and Kermit sent me an invitation to be in Disney’s `The Muppets' — they asked if I’d read the script and consider the role of Mary. Kermit was a big part of my decision. I don’t like to tell Jason that ’cause he’s a little sensitive that I might be partial to Kermit, but I am.

“I was really into the Muppet movies, the TV shows, the songs,” continues Adams. “It’s like every kid’s dream—when you’re playing with your stuffed animals, you wish they’d come to life and talk to you. And now, the Muppets are real. It’s so great to have that physical presence in front of you.”

Adams is currently filming Zack Snyder’s “Man of Steel,” the “Superman” reboot for Warner Bros., in which she plays Lois Lane. The film also stars Henry Cavill as Superman and Russell Crowe, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner and Michael Shannon. Adams starred in Nora Ephron’s “Julie & Julia,” reuniting with co-star Meryl Streep, having previously starred opposite Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman in John Patrick Shanley's Oscar®-nominated film "Doubt," which earned Adams her second Academy Award® nomination. Adams starred in Kevin Lima’s “Enchanted” opposite Patrick Dempsey and Susan Sarandon. “Enchanted” is a romantic fable that mixes live action with CG animation for Disney. The film earned her a Golden Globe® nomination for Best Actress.

For her role in Phil Morrison’s “Junebug” in 2005, Adams earned her first Academy Award® and SAG Award® nominations. She won an Independent Spirit Award, Broadcast Film Critics Association Award, National Society of Film Critics Award, a San Francisco Film Critics Society Award, and the Breakthrough Gotham Award. Adams also won the Special Jury Prize for Acting at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival for her role as the pregnant, childlike Ashley, who is awestruck by the arrival of her glamorous sister-in-law.

Adams’ other film credits include Shawn Levy’s “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” opposite Ben Stiller; Christine Jeffs and Karen Moncrieff’s criticallyacclaimed “Sunshine Cleaning” opposite Emily Blunt and Alan Arkin; Mike Nichols’ “Charlie Wilson’s War” opposite Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman; Bharat Nalluri’s "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day” opposite Frances McDormand; and Steven Spielberg’s “Catch Me if You Can” with Leonardo DiCaprio.

Opening soon across the Philippines, “The Muppets” is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International through Columbia Pictures.