A major shake up for The Simpsons‘ casting, long time voice actor Hank Azaria has confirmed that he will no longer be voicing Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.
Back in 2017, comedian Hari Kondabolu’s The Problem With Apu project shone a light on Apu and the depiction of the South Asian American community as a result of the character’s popularity on The Simpsons.
Putting a spotlight on racial and cultural stereotypes, the documentary prompted new controversy around the character of Apu, leading Azaria to note that he’d be happy to step aside from the role.
Speaking with /Film, Azaria explained the studio and the show’s move to retire him from the character.
“I won’t be doing the voice anymore, unless there’s some way to transition it or something.” he said.
“We all made the decision together. We all agreed on it; we feel like it’s the right thing and [feel] good about it.”
Prior to this announcement, The Simpsons creator Matt Groening refused to admit to any claims of racism or stereotyping surrounding Apu. Claiming that Apu was a nod to ‘The Apu Trilogy’, Groening told the New York Times back in 2018, “I’m proud of what we do on the show. And I think it’s a time in our culture where people love to pretend they’re offended.”
The Simpsons acknowledged Kondabolu’s documentary in the episode ‘No Good Read Goes Unpunished’, a rather dismissive nod to the controversy that earned the show more criticism.
Off the back of The Problem With Apu‘s release, Kondabolu acknowledged the flak he copped from fans of The Simpsons and the wider public.
“It’s not a good feeling to get hate mail every single day,” he told Vox. “But you know that it resonated with people. Most people didn’t, I think, watch it, but just the questioning of the status quo created something. It hit a nerve.”
The Simpsons team have not commented further on this latest news.
