Kermit Voice Actor Expresses Concern Over Jim Henson’s Legacy Ahead of New Documentary Release

Former Kermit the Frog actor, Steve Whitmire, is speaking out about being excluded from the upcoming Jim Henson documentary, “Jim Henson Thought Man.” Whitmire, who took over the role in 1990 after Henson’s passing, shared his disappointment with TMZ, stating that he believes Jim’s spirit inside The Muppets is fading away.

According to Whitmire, he provided producers with home videos dating back to 1978 for the documentary but was never contacted for an interview. Despite being left out of the project, Whitmire expressed more concern about the lack of Jim Henson’s influence in the current state of The Muppets.

Whitmire explained, “It doesn’t hurt to be excluded from a documentary, it hurts to see Jim’s spirit, the very spirit celebrated in a documentary such as this, wither unnecessarily.” He believes that the life Henson breathed into his character is slowly fading away and that the company lost something valuable when they let him go in 2017.

Whitmire voiced Kermit the Frog for nearly 30 years, including in iconic films like “The Muppet Christmas Carol” and “Muppet Treasure Island,” before being fired by Disney. The company cited “unacceptable business conduct,” but Whitmire maintains that he only argued over the creative direction of the characters he knew so well.

“Jim Henson Thought Man” is set to premiere on Disney+ on May 31, but Whitmire believes that Disney needs more than just a documentary to preserve Jim Henson’s legacy.