It’s a big day for Muppet fans as The Muppet Show is making its return to television for the first time in decades in the form of a TV special. While the show is very much designed to look and feel exactly like the Muppet Show of old, a great deal has changed since then, most notably many of the voices of the characters, including the iconic Kermit the Frog. However, the former voice of Kermit the Frog is not nearly as excited, and he's clearly quite upset.
Following the death of Jim Henson in 1990, Steve Whitmire took the mantle of Kermit, whom he performed until he was fired by Disney back in 2016. Ahead of the release of the new Muppet TV special on the 2026 TV schedule (which is available with a Disney+ subscription), Whitmire posted an extended blog to discuss his views on the future of the Muppets, and Kermit in particular. He makes it clear he is greatly concerned, and he claims he’s not the only one, saying…
What prompted me to write this is seeing literally thousands of comments and receiving as many messages and emails over the last ten years, from people like you, people who sense that Kermit the Frog’s days are numbered. In both cases most of the criticisms are from casual viewers, not deeply devoted Muppets fans. This says to me that it’s the public at large that senses something has gone wrong.
Whitmire’s argument is that the Muppets under Disney are treated like any other character role that an actor might perform, but that this is the wrong way for Kermit to be handled. He claims there is a specific character that Kermit the Frog is, and if the performer isn’t handling the role exactly as Jim Henson did, and hasn’t learned how to do it properly, then the essence of the character is gone.
This perspective certainly fits in with the information that came out a decade ago that reportedly led to Whitmore’s firing. Whitmire spoke back in 2017 about disagreements he had with the creative team behind the short-lived The Muppets TV series on ABC. He felt that things Kermit did in the show, such as lying to his nephew Robin about breaking up with Miss Piggy, were simply acts Kermit would not do. This apparently led to some clashes on the set.
Disney has a somewhat different view of the situation, as it called the reason for Whitmire’s firing “unacceptable business conduct,” which the company said took place over many years.
Matt Vogel has been performing Kermit since Whitmire’s departure, but considering the Muppets have seen limited use in that time, the new Muppet Show special may be a lot of people’s first experience with the “new” Kermit. While many may take issue with the voice being noticeably different, Whitmore feels the difference is far deeper than that…
But perhaps the most devastating loss of all is that there is no longer a basis for us to ever find out the truth of what Kermit would and should be doing next. Without Kermit continuing to be the vessel of Jim’s influence, we have lost Jim for all time, just as without Jim's influence continuing within Kermit, he is lost as well.
Whitmore clearly feels very strongly about how Kermit and the Muppets are portrayed.
What the future holds for Kermit and the rest of the Muppets is unclear right now. This new Muppet Show special may lead to a revival of the series, though that may not mean The Muppets, as some remember them, will be back.
