Pre-production is moving forward on a sequel to The Muppets (cue Kermit's "Yaaaay!"), but Jason Segel won't be attached as a writer this time around. According to Vulture, director James Bobin and original co-write Nicholas Stoller will handle the script for the sequel. However, Segel won't have time to work on the screenplay due to his commitments to How I Met Your Mother, his burgeoning film career, and doing publicity for the upcoming comedies The Five-Year Engagement and This Is Forty. It's a bit of a bummer since he and Stoller were so gung-ho on getting the Muppets back to the big screen, but there's still a chance he could star in the sequel if the script has a place for him.
One of the great things about The Muppets is that Segel didn't make the movie all about his character. Gary's got a character arc, but the film really belongs to Walter and Kermit. While I have nothing against Segel, I can see a Muppets sequel without Gary. Now on the other hand, if Bret McKenzie doesn't come back to do the music, then I'll be concerned.