>On Thursday, Whitmire responded to speculation around the circumstances of his departure in a personal blog post, stating that it was not his choice to leave the role. "For me the Muppets are not just a job, or a career, or even a passion. They are a calling, an urgent, undeniable, impossible to resist way of life," he wrote of his career. "This is my life’s work since I was 19 years old. I feel that I am at the top of my game, and I want all of you who love the Muppets to know that I would never consider abandoning Kermit or any of the others because to do so would be to forsake the assignment entrusted to me by Jim Henson, my friend and mentor, but even more, my hero." Whitmire continued to note that he was told by Muppets Studio executives in October 2016 that the role of Kermit would be recast. "I have offered multiple remedies to their two stated issues which had never been mentioned to me prior to that phone call. I wish that we could have sat down, looked each other in the eye, and discussed what was on their minds before they took such a drastic action," said, adding that he retained hope that Disney would "reverse their course" in the ensuing nine months. Ultimately, they did not. "I just want you all to know that I am sorry if I have disappointed any of you at any point throughout our journey, and to let everyone know that I am devastated to have failed in my duty to my hero," he concluded. He noted that the website he set up — on which his note is posted — is intended to be "a place to connect and share on all things Muppet, past, present and future."In a statement released to TIME, a spokesperson for The Muppets Studio wrote: "The Muppets Studio thanks Steve for his tremendous contributions to Kermit the Frog and The Muppets franchise. We wish him well in his future endeavors."
>We wish him well in his future endeavors. That's basically machine code for "Fuck him."
Isaiah Cox
what did he do? Was it politics?
Jason Allen
>their two stated issues
What could they possibly have been? Why didn't he tell the public what they were?
Sebastian Howard
Disney is ice cold.
Cooper Campbell
It's always politics.
Dylan Torres
>I am devastated to have failed in my duty to my hero" Fuck you Disney for making him think that. I firmly believe that Steve lived up to Jim's legacy.
Nathan Reyes
Put it this way: he wasn't known as Steve "She's 18 in Frog Years" Whitmire for jothing. Disney did the right thing and protected themselves.
Caleb James
Thats fckg fine, Steve say a lot of BS about our loved president
Justin Jenkins
>I would never consider abandoning Kermit or any of the others because to do so would be to forsake the assignment entrusted to me by Jim Henson, my friend and mentor, but even more, my hero.
That's not how copyrights work.
Nathan Ward
God damn it Disney could you at least pretend your not a soulless corporation
Landon Foster
Damn at least give us a hint as to what the reasons were. It couldn't have been a pay issue because I feel like Steve wouldn't care about that.
Levi Martin
>Kermit needs to be more "hip" >We want Kermit to be funnier/wackier I imagine it was a couple of bullshit demands like this, something that cant really be quantified so they can sack the actor regardless of any changes they might be willing to make.
Adam Scott
>Was it politics? Wouldn't doubt it. Disney/ABC just dropped Tim Allen's popular "Last Man Standing" series because Allen is a Trump supporter.
Asher Harris
Show me them sources you dirty, stinking liar.
Christian Wright
Remember "muh feelings!"
Matthew Cook
I'll believe this when we have 100% confirmation that Steve wrote this statement.
Wyatt Carter
>Steve say a lot of BS about our loved president wuh??
Ethan Jackson
It was a Pepe the frog related, Steve was using his Kermit voice to spout Pepe memes and someone recorded it.
Jacob Williams
>Steve Whitmire Steve Whitmire
Wyatt Bailey
mean while Ike perlmutter still runs Marvel.
Nathan Wright
The sources on Steve "Permit the Log" Whitmire? Steve "One-Hand Puppet Show" Whitmire?
Blake Cox
that was the prior one
Joshua Collins
Please don't let this be another Kevin Clash situation...
Adam Morris
He was running Marvel long before Disney even considered buying it.
Nathaniel Phillips
What racist/sexist/homophobic/etc. thing do they say that he said?
Anthony Ross
Holy shit. That's beautiful and I believe him. I'm never turned when actors complain about being fired, but I am absolutely on Whitmire's side reading this.
Brandon Nguyen
I seriously want to know their reason for firing him. As it is, that is really, really cold.
Carter Murphy
Ike's democrat. Trump was democrat until the 90s.
Mcu is aploitical with a conserative view on who is a hero.
Joshua Jackson
Two reasons, he says, that they had never brought up before and he was willing to adjust to. I wonder what they are.
Robert Robinson
>because Allen is a Trump supporter. No, he's not even that. He just said he didn't hate the guy.
Caleb Barnes
Ike was kicked out of Marvel Studios, 'member? He just runs the comics now.
Eli Gutierrez
Yeah. But the tv and cartoonstill is close to the comics. We still get synergy from the shows.
While the licences are up to both disney and ike.
Jayden Evans
Jeesh, the guy's literally been involved with Muppets since the fucking OG Muppet Show and they do him like that?
Shit's fucked, yo.
No wonder Frank Oz doesn't get involved anymore.
William Hernandez
But I want to know what exactly those reasons were. It sounds like whatever they were, they weren't scandals. Especially with how he addresses it.
Anthony Watson
>No wonder Frank Oz doesn't get involved anymore. I think he knew Disney was gonna start kicking out the old timers and start straying away from what Jim had in mind, so he got out before he said something or pissed somebody off.
Hunter Barnes
Seriously. I usually stay out of the "*Insert Company* is bad" thing, but this is straight up cold.
Carter Lee
>it's not easy being green
Lucas Morgan
Underrated
Colton Kelly
This totally breaks my heart. Guy had no reason to be kicked out of his life's work.
Nolan Bailey
Oh joy something Kermit just flat out isn't. He's the put upon straight man. He can be funny but that always lies in a witty barb retort to someones displeasure.
Luis Clark
And his show wasn't liberal and cut into liberals as a modern Archie Bunker.
Which was okay when it was an Island in a sea of liberalism. But now the oceans have receded and they see its part of the country.
Can't have that.
Julian Green
Politics in business terms means something different dude, like pissing off the wrong people.
Landon Nguyen
You're thinking of Elmo. Kermit was voiced by Jim Henson before Whitmire, and nobody before that.
Levi Parker
>machine code Lol.
Charles Morgan
Its not wrong.
Kayden Smith
And that's enough.
Evan Edwards
That "The Office" attempt was garbage. Utterly misunderstanding why shit works with the muppets.
Grayson Young
>called the new Muppet movies "too cute" >said the new abc muppet show missed the point of the muppets Why doesn't he come back and show them what the Muppets are, as a director?
Hunter Torres
Why would they wait so long to fire him for comments about Obama?
Jace Bennett
REEEE fuck Disney
Gavin Richardson
>the new Kermit is just one of the old performers, Matt Vogel that tells you Whitmire was canned for being at odds with the company and they needed a replacement quick.
Gavin Gomez
Probably stuff towards the character, changing him
Alexander White
Wasn't that Elmo?
William Cox
It was.
Now I want to see the Sesame Street episode about Elmo raping Zoe and not realizing it's bad until he's told. Complete with getting sent to jail.
Probably, but this is Disney we're talking about, we'll probably never get a proper answer, just vague hints.
Matthew Bennett
>Ike Perlmutter >Democrat >New Years Eve 2016
Yeah, defo a democrat.
Angel Robinson
>Why doesn't he come back and show them what the Muppets are, as a director? This.
Christopher Turner
If it isnt Politics, its Pedoshit. Seeing as we dont have a mugshot and them severing ties with him Jared style, Its the former.
Jayden Lee
...
Ian Brown
>Why didn't he tell the public what they were? NDAs
Robert Lee
>popular
Adrian White
well I like his attitude towards his role. I hope he remains involved with the studio somehow with all that experience.
Colton Cooper
Because that's a lot more likely than ABC not wanting to pay the increased production costs for a show that they don't even own and have to share revenue for as a result.
>TIL that while Danny Trejo was filming his cameo in "The Muppets: Most Wanted!" his mother passed. The cast all offered their sympathy but he shrugged it off because of his 'tough guy' persona. It wasn't until Steve Whitmire apologized in character as Kermit the Frog that Trejo broke down crying.
I did also find this: toughpigs.com/steve-whitmire-news/ It's nothing new, but it notes that Matt Zogel was the performer for Constantine, the Kermit impersonator in "Muppets Most Wanted", so that softens the blow a bit.
Anyways, I've got nothing. Just a story about Danny Trejo.
Benjamin Edwards
No, Marvel Studios was just removed from Marvel Entertainment. Ike still runs the comics, tv shows, merchandising, licensing, games, websites, toys, etc.
Zachary Hill
Corporations can't have souls. Despite what some politicians would have you believe, they're not people.
Jaxson Davis
>It wasn't until Steve Whitmire apologized in character as Kermit the Frog that Trejo broke down crying damn son
Kayden Roberts
>We missed the timeline where Jim went to the hospital 2 weeks earlier and became CCO of the Walt Disney Company.
Angel Cooper
fpbp
Henry Sanders
Had some of the best ratings in it's time slot, but sure, that's not popular.
Jace Anderson
I wish this meme would die. It was booted for a combination of reasons. Time Allen has said he doesn't hate Trump but he makes fun of both sides on the show.
It was cancelled because of high production costs and the construction in Disney Tokyo. It wasn't the only thing to get axed either.
Conservative fucks just wanted another thing to point at and say filthy liberals took muh show
Connor Green
You mean Shanghai.
Tokyo's been around for over 30 years and isn't even owned by Disney themselves.
Wyatt Cooper
On the topic, Disneyland Paris is the one that failed at launch, right?
Austin Brooks
Yeah, and the repercussions of that rough launch fucked things up in park development for over a decade.
Cooper Thomas
Yeah, wasn't Allen poised to get a huge raise for the next season? Costs were probably too high for the show to keep going based on returns
Charles Russell
It had the best ratings of its time slot, it was down 38% from its 1st season. The only time it was #1 recently was the finally, it was beaten by MacGyver every other week.
Colton Long
>It was cancelled because of high production costs
Plus it's owned by 20 Century Fox so ABC would be taking on that additional cost and risk while not being able to make it back off of DVD sales.
Samuel Williams
I hope Matt Vogel can do well as Kermit
Brayden Sullivan
Ike only ever met Trump once: At a charity fundraiser that they both coincidentally attended. Trump is a "celebrity spokesperson" for some random children's charity that Ike coincidentally happens to also be a big contributor to. Ike is a notorious far-left democrat. Their meeting had nothing to do with politics.
Chase Flores
Jim Henson was a literal communist. By his own admission. There's no fucking way Henson would have mentored this dude if they didn't see eye-to-eye on politics. Henson was known for refusing to hire anyone who wasn't as far-left as he was.
Luis Nguyen
Where's the proof? Henson was literally Christian.
Jeremiah Young
It really bums me out. Like, if he was retiring or something, it'd be one thing, but what good reason does Disney have for this?
I mean, if this happened last September, we would've heard about it sooner if it was something serious.
Blake Perez
Leaves the room all stone faced comes back in with Kermit and gives him a hug and condolences.
Logan Ward
Why the fuck did Disney fire this guy
Lucas Watson
Power Moves. He was Old Guard and they are going to do Muppet type things he wouldn't approve of and would be the voice for Jim.
But it'll likely be a massive Clusterfuck and they'll ask him to come back. Just like Force Awakens.
Owen Adams
Why are there so many Songs about FUCKING SHIT PISSING NIGGER COCKS!!1! And what's on the other side?
Elijah Brooks
Nah its got to stay within lyrical rhythm.
Oliver Taylor
I'll be honest, I haven't watched a Muppet related thing since the first new movie, but I am insanely curious and disappointed.
This will affect me 0 ways, but what the fuck could he have done?
Christopher Gutierrez
Most Wanted was actually a lot of fun with some good songs. I had 'Big House' stuck in my head for like a week.
Haven't seen any of the show.
Carter Rogers
I'll probably give it a go. I don't know why I stopped giving a shit.
Lincoln Rogers
If communists weren't atheists, they'd be catholics.
Anthony Powell
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXppfX-mBsE
Jeremiah Long
well the last big loss was because of a game of "how young is too young" that he lost, and most every other loss was to a death
Jaxon Robinson
They're gonna make Kermit a minority.
Tyler Bennett
So what kind of oppression Olympics mess of a person are we thinking will replace Steve? Since Elmo is done by a black guy, i'm guessing they'll want to one-up Sesame Street and hire a gay black ftm tranny.