Sesame Street is back for season 47 on HBO in January, offering “reimagined” “Elmo’s World” segments. This season, Elmo stars in what Sesame Workshop calls “an updated, fun, and fresh version" of "Elmo’s World," with25 five-minute installments. Kids accompany Elmo and his friend Smartie, an animated cellphone, as he uses his imagination to dive into the topic of the day.
Bill Irwin returns as Mr. Noodle, while characters include Mr. Noodle’s brothers, played by Daveed Diggs from Broadway’s Hamilton and comedian Daniel Koren, and pet dogs Schmoodle, Floodle and Frank. The original “Elmo’s World,” with Dorothy and the rest of Elmo’s friends, will appear in select season 47 episodes.
“We’re excited to bring back an inventive and interactive take on one of the most successful children’s television segments, ‘Elmo’s World,’ for today’s kids,” said Brown Johnson, executive VP and creative director, Sesame Workshop. “Kids love to learn with Elmo, and they are sure to enjoy the beautiful new chalk-drawn world Elmo creates in his imagination. We are also thrilled to be working with the legendary ‘original’ Mr. Noodle, Bill Irwin, and proud to bring two new diverse and multi-talented Mr. Noodles into our ‘World.’”
This season, Sesame Street will introduce a “kindness curriculum” to encourage positive behavior. A “kindness cam” segment will display children—shown clips from the episode and live action films depicting real kids doing similar acts of kindness—pointing out the kindness moment. In ‘The Kindness Kid’ episode, Zachary Levi visits Sesame Street to spread goodwill in the neighborhood.
“Kindness and empathy are learned behaviors,” said Dr. Rosemarie Truglio, senior VP of content and curriculum, Sesame Workshop. “It is important for preschool children to see and understand what it means to be kind. Children can learn that kindness means understanding the feelings and needs of others and that being kind not only makes others feel good, it can make them feel good too.”
Celeb guests this season include Jason Derulo, James Corden, Little Big Town and Sia.
After its long run on PBS, Sesame Street debuted on HBO in January 2016, featuring half-hour episodes trimmed of the stock content that used to round out the hour. Episodes turn up on PBS nine months after they debut on cable.
Produced by the nonprofit educational organization, Sesame Workshop, Sesame Street is underwritten in part by Beaches Resorts and UnitedHealthcare.
