The producers of "Sesame Street" said Monday they're considering legal action against panhandlers who dress up like Muppets — as Mayor de Blasio vowed a crackdown on Times Square's growing horde of cartoon impersonators.
The non-profit Sesame Workshop said it "has not authorized the appearance of any Sesame Street costumed characters on public streets in any city."
"We care about our fans and the image of our brand, and, like everyone else, we care about public safety on our streets," the company said.
"We have been talking to other concerned groups, including third-party intellectual-property-rights holders, to determine appropriate actions that we can take."
"Elmo" and "Cookie Monster" impersonators have been busted in recent years over disturbing incidents that include going on anti-Semitic rants and shoving a 2-year-old after his mom refused to hand over a $2 tip.
De Blasio said he was outraged by the increasing lawlessness of some of the characters, including the "Spider-Man" who was caught on video slugging a cop on Saturday and five others busted afterward.
"I think this has gone too far, and it's time to take some real steps to regulate this new reality — I don't know whether to call it an industry or what you call it, but it needs to be regulated," de Blasio said.
"I know some of my colleagues in the City Council are looking at legislation that we could move quickly to create licensing and rules."
Until then, de Blasio vowed strict enforcement of all existing laws, including a ban on aggressive panhandling.
"It's not appropriate for anyone to demand a certain amount of money from a passing tourist and harass them," de Blasio said.
As many as three cops at a time were spotted keeping watch over the costumed coterie in Times Square on Monday, a day after the NYPD trailed some panhandlers and told tourists that paying them to pose for photos was strictly optional.
Councilman Andy King (D-Bronx) said he planned to introduce a bill next month that would cover anyone who wears a mask or "changes their physical appearance" in order to ask people for money.
"This has become a real headache for a lot of New Yorkers, tourists and children," he said.
King said he hoped to have the law enacted in time for Halloween, and that failure to comply would be punishable by a fine and forced removal.
A fake Batman, however, insisted that "the city can't do nothing" because he pays taxes on his earnings.
"You know how much this costume costs? $3,000," the faux Caped Crusader complained.
"The problem now is the police are telling people they don't have to pay to take a picture. That's the big problem right now."
Ricardo Ruiz, who was dressed up as Mario from the "Super Mario Bros." video game, said he has had a state tax ID since last year and pays between $150 and $180 every three months.
"If it's free, OK," he said of the proposed city license through a Spanish-language interpreter.
"But we don't make a lot, so . . . if it's more money . . . no."
Additional reporting by Antonio Antenucci and Dana Sauchelli
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