Kelly Younger is a screenwriter, Emmy-nominated television writer and producer, playwright, and story consultant. He is currently a writer on the new installment of The Muppet Show, produced by Seth Rogen, directed by Alex Timbers, and starring Sabrina Carpenter. The special received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Younger previously co-created and co-executive produced Muppets Now and co-wrote and co-executive produced Muppets Haunted Mansion, which earned four Emmy nominations, won an Emmy Award, and received the 2022 PGA Award for Outstanding Children’s Programming. He also wrote Kermit’s 2025 University of Maryland commencement address—the “Kermencement”—which was featured in CNN’s Year in Pictures and Google’s Year in Search after becoming one of the year’s most-Googled cultural moments.

He wrote the Amazon MGM Studios feature film Candy Cane Lane, starring Eddie Murphy and Tracee Ellis Ross, directed by Reginald Hudlin, and produced by Imagine Entertainment. The film premiered in December 2023 and became the biggest Amazon MGM Studios-produced title of all time domestically.

Younger is currently co-writing the Skydance Animation feature Eddie and the Beanstalk for directors Rich Moore (Zootopia) and Jim Reardon (WALL-E). His latest feature, the family western comedy The Good, the Bad, and the Dudleys, is in development with Teton Ridge Entertainment. He is also developing an animated series with Academy Award-winning director Bong Joon Ho.

As a member of the Disney Animation Story Trust, Younger contributed to Ralph Breaks the Internet (story credit), Frozen II, Moana, and Raya and the Last Dragon. He also participated in the Pixar Brain Trust on Cars 3, Incredibles 2, Toy Story 4, Coco, and Onward. For Disney, he wrote a reboot of the Herbie franchise for producer Jason Reed (Mulan). Additionally, Younger has developed film and television projects for Paramount Animation, Warner Animation Group, DreamWorks Animation, Illumination, Apple, Hulu, and Disney Originals.

As a playwright, Younger’s work has been produced Off-Broadway, regionally, and internationally. His new play Rorschach will have its world premiere at the Skylight Theatre in Los Angeles, directed by Cameron Watson. His comedy Kalamazoo, co-written with Michelle Kholos Brooks, won the Reva Shiner Comedy Award and is published by Dramatists Play Service. He was commissioned by New York’s Irish Repertory Theatre to adapt Peter Quinn’s Banish Children of Eve for the stage, and his play Tender, nominated for the IRNE Award for Best New Play and a finalist for the Laurents/Hatcher Award, was developed by Manhattan Theatre Club and featured in its 7x7 series, starring Michael Shannon and directed by Lynne Meadow. His comedy Mandate won the Samuel French Off-Broadway Festival and is currently being developed as a feature film. Several of his short plays have also been published, received awards, and been produced internationally, from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival to performances in Dubai.

Younger is a story consultant who is frequently brought into studios to assist with projects in development and production. He is a frequent speaker on fairy tales, mythology, and story structure, and a recurring panelist and judge at the Austin Film Festival. He is also a member of STORY HOUSE, the production company led by Meg LeFauve (Inside Out, Inside Out 2) and Joe Forte (Firewall), where he regularly participates in and leads creative roundtables for Netflix Original Film.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Younger earned an MA in Classics from Loyola University Chicago and a PhD in Literature and Drama from University College Dublin. He is a tenured professor of English at Loyola Marymount University, where he teaches writing workshops, screenwriting, and seminars on fairy tales.