Monsters Cereal Characters Brought to Life as Hilarious Puppets as General Mills Partners with the Legendary Jim Henson Company

Count Chocula, Boo Berry and Franken Berry are reimagined in their fuzziest forms yet in celebration of The Jim Henson Company’s 70th anniversary

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--This Halloween, spooky nostalgia meets innovative imagination as General Mills unveils a monstrously magical makeover for its iconic Monsters Cereal lineup. In a first-of-its-kind collaboration with the legendary Jim Henson Company — celebrating its 70th anniversary this year — Count Chocula, Boo Berry and Franken Berry are being reimagined as puppets to delight fans in an entirely new way.

The frightful fun features the debut of a limited-edition fuzzy Franken Berry cereal box, available exclusively on Walmart.com for $7.70 beginning Tuesday, October 7. Designed to mimic the fleece-like texture of the newly created puppet characters, the collector-worthy box offers fans a tactile twist on the beloved brand. With its soft-touch finish and eye-catching design, it’s a must-have for cereal collectors, Halloween enthusiasts, and Henson fans alike.

“This is more than a cereal box, it’s a piece of art,” said Mindy Murray, Brand Experience Director for Morning Foods at General Mills. “We know that fans have an incredible love for Monsters and anticipate their return every year. That’s why we knew the partnership with The Jim Henson Company was the perfect way to deliver surprise and delight – and the first-of-its-kind fuzzy Franken Berry box.”

“For 70 years, The Jim Henson Company has brought some of the world’s most memorable and adored characters to life and our incredible team at Jim Henson’s Creature Shop especially enjoyed realizing these beloved Monsters as puppets for the first time ever,” said Nicole Goldman, Executive Vice President of Branding for The Jim Henson Company. “This irreverent and funny take on these well-known characters will make this Halloween especially memorable for the amazing and loyal fans of both Monsters Cereals and The Jim Henson Company.”

Starting in August, fans can grab this year’s limited-edition cereal boxes featuring puppet-y versions of the Monsters, brought to life with a bold, dimensional look that practically leaps off the pack. But the fun doesn’t stop there. Flip each box for a look at how the team from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop used their signature puppet-building expertise and artistry to reimagine these beloved characters as part of the iconic family of monsters from throughout The Jim Henson Company’s 70-year history. Fans will also want to check out shop.Henson.com for merch and collectibles that commemorate this historic partnership. And for the full experience, fans can head to social media to see and hear the Monsters in action – brought to life in full puppet form unlike ever before.

Since their debut in 1971, the Monsters have blended spooky fun with seasonal flavor, delighting generations of fans. This year’s puppet transformation marks a bold new chapter, infusing the franchise with the timeless charm and craft of Henson magic. The partnership idea originated with Imagine Entertainment, who had worked with both companies in the past on separate projects. Imagine provided creative direction and oversaw creation of the filmed content.

Whether you're reliving fond Halloween memories or making new ones, Monsters Cereal promises a season of frightful fun, fuzzy feels, and puppet-powered nostalgia. For more information, follow @generalmills and @hensoncompany on Instagram and Facebook, and visit cerealsociety.com.

About General Mills

General Mills makes food the world loves. The company is guided by its Accelerate strategy to boldly build its brands, relentlessly innovate, unleash its scale and stand for good. Its portfolio of beloved brands includes household names like Cheerios, Nature Valley, Blue Buffalo, Häagen-Dazs, Old El Paso, Pillsbury, Betty Crocker, Totino’s, Annie’s, Wanchai Ferry, Yoki and more. General Mills generated fiscal 2025 net sales of U.S. $19 billion. In addition, the company’s share of non-consolidated joint venture net sales totaled U.S. $1 billion. For more information, visit www.generalmills.com.

About The Jim Henson Company

The Jim Henson Company has remained an established leader in family entertainment for 70 years and is recognized as an innovator in puppetry, animatronics, and digital animation. The Company’s most recent credits include Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Road Trip, starring Eva Longoria and Cheech Marin for Disney+, the Oscar®-winning Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio for Netflix, and the Emmy®-winning Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock for Apple TV+. Other television credits include Slumberkins and Harriet the Spy for Apple TV+; Dinosaur Train, Splash and Bubbles, and Sid the Science Kid all for PBS; Earth to Ned for Disney+; and Word Party and the Emmy-winning series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, both for Netflix. Iconic catalogue titles include Fraggle Rock, The Storyteller, the sci-fi series Farscape, and the ground-breaking fantasy classics The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.

Headquartered in Los Angeles with additional locations in New York and London, the Company is also home to Jim Henson’s Creature Shop™, a pre-eminent puppet and creature-building group and industry leader in puppeteered digital animation, with international film, television, theme park, and advertising clients.