There is a lot of charm you get from using puppets in movies. So said VFX artist Goran Backman in an interview with Cinemablend after confirming that, in most shots of The Mandalorian, the worldwide worshipped character Grogu was not inserted with CGI into the series, but rather was included in scenes as an animatronic puppet. One of the reasons behind this decision was series creator Jon Favreau's fondness for the legacy of the iconic George Lucas, who had used a puppet Yoda in the original Star Wars films. By taking this artistic departure, they proved that, in an filled with so much technology and visual effects, puppets are still a viable and effective choice.
Naturally, Grogu is not the first puppet in movies or TV. Movies with puppets were first produced around the 1900s, most famously in genres such as comedy and animation. Most of them were intended for children and teenagers, featuring characters that reached the audience's heart, such as Kermit the frog, Alf and E.T., to name just a few of them. Eventually, puppets conquered yet a new arena: the horror genre. One of the first productions to make puppets become terrifying was The Great Gabbo, the 1929 film in which Otto, a ventriloquist's dummy, begins to speak and even think on his own behalf.
From then on, puppets were not only able to arouse tenderness, they could also be creepy. Just remember the shark in Jaws, who, despite the fact that he didn't appear so often on screen, terrorized the whole world. Over time, puppets ventured into other genres, although they never lost their special charm and mystique. Many of them had little or no lines, with the main focus of attention being their distinctive movements. These days, there are many more resources available to filmmaking than just puppets. However, puppets continue to be a valuable tool, mostly successful, charming audiences and recalling yesterday's greatest classics. Therefore, here is a look back at the best movies with puppets, ranked.
8 Various Characters — Labyrinth
Labyrinth is a movie that had all the ingredients to be a hit. This 1986 production starred David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly and was directed by puppeteer Jim Henson, who is best known for creating The Muppets, in collaboration with George Lucas — both big names in the world of puppetry. However, Labyrinth was not a big hit at the time of its release, but it grew in popularity over the years. This film features a number of puppets, for which Henson worked collaboratively with his wife, Wendy Froud, and his team at the Creature Shop. The puppets themselves were operated by well-known puppeteers such as Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, and Karen Prell, however, filming took several months to complete due to the number of puppets and animatronics that were included in the film, involving a large amount of crews to maneuver them. The most complicated one to handle was Hoggle, who had Shari Weiser inside the costume while his face was remotely operated.
7 Falkor — The NeverEnding Story
The NeverEnding Story is a 1984 fantasy film produced in Germany and directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It was considered, at the time, the most expensive film produced outside the United States and the Soviet Union. Among its main characters was Falkor, a huge and lovable Luck Dragon. Two different puppets of Falkor were used throughout the film, one of them was over 50 feet long and was built by Guiseppe Tortura. The structure was so large and heavy that only some parts were movable. At the same time, it was mechanically controlled to achieve minor interactions. Above the structure, Falkor was covered in scales and pink angora wool, with his face designed by artist Arthur Collin.
6 Chucky — Child's Play
Chucky is one of horror cinema's most legendary puppets, having his cinematic debut in the 1988 film Child's Play and later showing up in the sequels. The mastermind behind this terrifying character was the film's co-writer himself, Don Mancini, who based his design on the My Buddy dolls. When he handed the design of Chucky to Kevin Yagher, he specifically detailed every single feature of the doll and even the clothes he was meant to wear. During the production of the films, the doll was handled by a team of nine puppeteers led by Brock Winkless, each member operating a different part of the puppet. For the scenes in which the character was moving, the production hired Ed Gale, an actor who wore a suit and for whom props were customized for the scene. Over the years, the character had two major redesigns. And, while in the 2019 film the character's appearance was quite far from the original doll, he still bore some resemblance in certain physical features and his devilish attitude.
5 Gizmo — Gremlins
Don't expose it to bright lights, don't get it wet, and never, ever, feed it after midnight. Those were the three golden rules for keeping a Mogwai. The adorable little creatures from the Gremlins movie could turn into terrifying and mischievous characters in a heartbeat. The artists in charge of bringing these creatures to life were Chris Walas and Rick Baker, in the first and second films respectively. In Gremlins, Walas used mostly latex rubber for the puppets and a combination of wires and switches to control them. In the 1990 sequel, Baker was in charge of the Gremlins' looks, persuaded by the idea of being able to give each of the characters a particular appearance and details, making them easy to identify.
4 Yoda — Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
Yoda is one of the most iconic characters in cinema. The puppet itself was created for the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back, with Frank Oz handling and voicing the character, assisted by Kathryn Mullen. The process of creating Yoda was long, and he was initially designed to look more like a gnome. Eventually, artist Stuart Freeborn ended up combining his features with Albert Einstein's to create the face of the Star Wars character. Throughout production, Yoda was redesigned a few times and even incorporated with CGI. However, for the 2017 film The Last Jedi, Yoda was restyled by Frank Oz using the original 1980 casts.
3 Kermit & the Muppets — The Muppets
The Muppets are probably the best known and most successful puppet franchise in the world. Created by Jim Henson in 1955 and internationally famous after their television show, The Muppets have their own movies, TV shows, plays and songs. Kermit, the main character, has even made his own cameos in other shows. What set The Muppets apart from the rest of the puppets back in the day was that the puppeteers were left out of frame. The other innovative aspect of these characters was the combination of different techniques that allowed The Muppets to perform activities that were unusual for a puppet since they required full-body movements, such as dancing or running.
2 The T-Rex — Jurassic Park
If there's one director who has explored puppets and animatronics, it is the legendary Steven Spielberg. And if there is a movie whose puppets and FX continue to amaze to this day, it is definitely Jurassic Park. The dinosaurs in this 1993 film were created by combining animatronics with CGI, and were under the charge of artist Stan Winson and Industrial Light & Magic. They were made to life-size and supervised by paleontologist Jack Horner so that they kept the features of real dinosaurs, looking closer to animals than to monsters. Spielberg's investment in this entire team worked, and the film was acclaimed for being groundbreaking for the time.
1 E.T. — E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Steven Spielberg reappears in this ranking to claim the first position with a character that struck close to his heart: the titular character in E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, based on the imaginary friend the director invented after his parents' divorce. The artist in charge of bringing this adorable alien to life was Carlo Rambaldi, in collaboration with the Jules Stein Eye Institute staff since, according to the producers, the character's main feature would be his distinctive, expressive eyes. The puppet had four different heads for its facial expressions that were controlled by a team of puppeteers, while a costume was used for the body. The team took three months to build E.T. at a cost of $1.5 million dollars.