Dark Crystal prequel set to premiere on Netflix in August

Netflix has announced it will release a prequel to The Dark Crystal. Photo / Supplied.

Jim Henson fans rejoice!

The highly anticipated The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance will be released by Netflix on August 30, the streaming platform has announced.

The 10-episode show is a prequel to the beloved 1982 puppet fantasy-adventure film, The Dark Crystal.

The series returns to the world of Thra where three Gelfling heroes — voiced by Rocketman star Taron Egerton, Game of Thrones' Nathalie Emmanuel and Witch actress Anya Taylor-Joy — discover the horrible secret behind the Skeksis' power, they set out on a journey to incite rebellion and save their world.

The original film, which Muppets impresario Jim Henson co-directed with Frank Oz, grossed over $US40 million ($A58 million) on a $US16 million ($A23 million) budget. Henson directed only three films in his stellar career with The Great Muppet Caper and Labyrinth being the other two. Netflix announced the series in 2017.

Interestingly, like The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance which used only puppets created by Jim Henson Co.'s Creature Shop and Brian Froud, the original feature's conceptual designer — there's no CGI in the series.

A scene from the 1981 movie The Dark Crystal. Photo / Supplied.

The Gelfling characters are voiced by Taron Egerton (Rian), Anya Taylor-Joy (Brea) and Nathalie Emmanuel (Deet), along with Caitriona Balfe, Helena Bonham Carter, Harris Dickinson, Natalie Dormer, Eddie Izzard, Theo James, Toby Jones, Shazad Latif, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mark Strong and Alicia Vikander.

The Skeksis and Mystics are voiced by Harvey Fierstein, Mark Hamill, Ralph Ineson, Jason Isaacs, Keegan-Michael Key, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Simon Pegg and Andy Samberg.