Blippi is Looking a Little Different These Days And Parents are Not Happy About the Change
If your kids are massive fans of Blippi, the children's entertainer who boasts more than 12 million YouTube subscribers, you might want to prepare them for this: The Blippi character has undergone some recent changes. And when we say "changes," what we really mean is this: There's a new Blippi actor in town, and kids (and their parents) are not happy to see Blippi replaced. Like, at all.
It all started back in 2019, when angry parents discovered that Blippi's live tour would not feature the actor Stevin John, who both created and plays Blippi on YouTube. Instead, an alternate actor, Clayton Grimm, would play the role on the live tour as a backup Blippi. Parents of Blippi fans were livid and even sought refunds—but that wasn't the last time Blippi would anger fans by using an alternate actor to play the role. Most recently, an Instagram post announced the return of Grimm (also known as "Blippi from the live show").
"Due to popular demand we are bringing more Blippi from The Live Show to you all! Don't miss the launch of 'Learn with Blippi' tomorrow on Blippi's YouTube channel. Who's ready!?," the post reads.
The comments on this post? Well, let's just say people aren't holding back. "When you order from wish and he arrives," one Instagram user writes. "Oh noooo, just like when they replaced Steve in Blues Clues #childhoodtrauma," another adds. Yet another commenter writes: "My 4 year old: 'is that guy dressed up like Blippi for Halloween?'"
Those are among the more benign responses. "I'm sorry but this is disappointing, so you're going to start uploading videos on your channel with someone else playing you? Wow this is insane! We love watching the original Blippi! This is not right," one fan writes. And other chimes in with "Hard pass. We're either team OG Blippi or team no Blippi. We don't play the imposter game. My kid will flip."
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But ultimately, it's not the end of the world—or the end of Blippi as we know him. Though kids and parents alike are wondering "why is there a new Blippi?" and "why is Blippi different?" the reality is, the original Blippi isn't being replaced.
"Stevin, the current Blippi, is not going anywhere! He will continue to play Blippi across a range of platforms and media. We are however adding a new Blippi to perform on the new YouTube show!" Team Blippi announced in an Instagram comment below the post.
It makes perfect sense: As Blippi's fan base has grown, so have demands on the character's creator. It completely stands to reason that the original actor might need some help in creating tons of beloved content for our children. So let's give the Blippi actor a chance, shall we? As one commenter says, "Get a grip guys. He not leaving [he's expanding] his brand! what happens when Stevin ages? Explain to your kids that he is Blippi's helper. Like Santa in the mall. He can only do so many things for your children. I think this is cool that he is trying to branch out and expand his brand!"
Comments (12)
Blippi is terrible, he basically debased himself for any little bit of fame by pooping on his friend. Definitely not the character I want my kids learning from
Read MoreThis new guy isnt nearly as informative or as entertaining as Stevin. His voice is annoying too.
Read MoreThe new actor over acts and is more like a replacement for Pee-wee Herman ( and we all know what happened to Pee-wee Herman 👎🏻).. I would think if you were gonna have a replacement actor you would make sure he’s almost exact to the original actor …
Read MoreActors get replaced in shows all the time. Steve from Blue's is the perfect example in this situation. No one bats an eye when the Disney princess you saw at Disney World is different than the one you see at Disney on Ice. It just seems so harsh to bash the show due to a new actor, as if it's totally unheard of 🤷. Honestly, this is a great opportunity for our children to learn adaptability and coping with change. I really like both characters for different reasons, but if I'm being completely honest, I'm shocked the original blippi's reputation survived the controversy of his personal choices.
Read MoreI'm very confused you are saying blippi has been replaced one minute and the next "blippi has not been replaced!" What?
Read MoreI love how this really doesn’t address why anyones upset. Here’s why we are, my children and I are all frustrated that they chose to have someone pose as blippi instead of having Blippi gain an actual helper. It’s weird to put another person into someone else box and have them pretend they are them. This human has a whole personality that we see nothing of but can clearly tell it’s not Stevin. On top of that it’s another perpetuation of this disturbing belief system that humans should be able to do it all. One human literally cannot do all this so why is it being portrayed they can? Why not validate the fact that we all need help sometimes and that individuality is a Good thing 🤦‍♀️
Read MoreI have no problem with this. I hope they keep the original actor off screen and behind screens. His original persona (not blippi) was way to controversial we wouldn’t let our kids watch him. Although you won’t see that mentioned anywhere easily you can find his other truly disturbing videos quite easily.
Read MoreTrolls… since we are going there… original Blippi is by far the better of the two .. the personalities aren’t even close and I do not find the new blippi believable… it’s something in his face that reads (forced) whereas the original blippi has a happier and more kid friendly nature.. what someone does in their personal life is their personal life… You’re bringing up issues like his last name is the reason your four year old doesn’t like blippi anymore that sounds like more of a personal issue that needs to be tackled within your four walls. Also sounds like you’re bringing up bullies… starts with the parents ya’ll …Just saying…
Trolls… since we are going there… original Blippi is by far the better of the two .. the personalities aren’t even close and I do not find the new blippi believable… it’s something in his face that reads (forced) whereas the original blippi has a happier and more kid friendly nature.. what someone does in their personal life is their personal life… You’re bringing up issues like his last name is the reason your four year old doesn’t like blippi anymore that sounds like more of a personal issue that needs to be tackled within your four walls. Also sounds like you’re bringing up bullies… starts with the parents ya’ll …Just saying…
I, too, was surprised by the history of the actor's original name, Stephen Grossman. My four-year-old daughter doesn't seem to care there is a new Blippi. It's amazing to me how successful and how much money the Blippi brand has made.
Other truly disturbing what? I'm very curious as to what you're talking about, as I've never known the original Blippi to be controversial or disturbing at all.
It was rather a shock to see a different blippi. I realized that the original creator and character has many demands but the least they could have done is say this is the new blippi assistant. And call him Flippi perfect, or another name whatever. My 4 yr-old granddaughter noticed the difference and so did I. I know it's not the end of the world but it didn't have to be such a freaking surprise either.
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