Disney is moving forward with a sequel to last year's 'The Muppets' -- but without the possible involvement of star and co-writer Jason Segel.

It's no surprise that Disney wants to produce a new Muppets movie after the franchise was literally raised from the dead by last fall's sweet-natured and critically acclaimed hit. Yet according to Vulture, the one person with arguably the most passion for the project, Jason Segel, may not be involved this time around.

Deals are reportedly already in place for director James Bobin and co-writer Nicholas Stoller to return, but Segel is apparently so busy with his other commitments - his role on TV's 'How I Met Your Mother' and the upcoming promotional efforts for -The Five Year Engagement' among them - that he may simply not have the time to work on the new script.

The silver lining to all this is that, according to a Disney source, there's still a chance that Segel could star in 'The Muppets 2', depending on how the script turns out. Segel spent three years and a lot of love and energy getting his and Stoller's vision of Jim Henson's beloved creations to the screen, so it seems strange to think that he would not be involved at all in a follow-up.

Then again, this is a town where they talk about making 'Ghostbusters 3' without Bill Murray, so anything is possible. With two-thirds of the creative team on board, it doesn't seem likely that a Muppets sequel would be wildly off the mark, but let's hope that Segel can find a way back in as well.

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