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Kermit the Frog is getting a new voice actor after 27 years

A new voice actor will be performing the iconic Muppet beginning next week.
/ Source: TODAY

The voice of Kermit the Frog is changing for the first time in 27 years.

Steve Whitmire, who has voiced the iconic Muppets character since 1990, has been replaced by fellow Muppets performer Matt Vogel, according to reports.

Kermit Takes Manhattan
Muppet Kermit the Frog and his operator Steve Whitmire in 2003. Whitmire is being replaced by voice actor Matt Vogel. Getty Images

Whitmire, 57, became the voice of Kermit following the death of Muppets creator Jim Henson in 1990.

He was selected by Henson's son Brian to inherit the character, according to a profile in the magazine Kill Screen.

After joining "The Muppet Show" in 1978, Whitmire also voiced Ernie from 1990-2014 and played Rizzo the Rat, Beaker and other characters.

The news was first reported by Muppets fan site Tough Pigs and confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter.

The Muppets Studio declined comment on the reasons for his departure.

Vogel's first appearance as Kermit will be next week in a "Muppets Thought of the Week" video, the studio told THR.

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