Simpsons actor Hank Azaria has actually supposedly retired from voicing Apu

Hank Azaria will retire from voicing the character of Apu on The Simpsons, according to an interview out of the 2020 TCAs.

Like most of the core Simpson’s cast, Azaria voices several roles in the long-running animated sitcom, consisting of Superintendent Chalmers, Moe, Comics Person, and Chief Wiggum. But his role as Kwik-E-Mart owner and Indian immigrant, Apu, has actually caused the program considerable controversy over the previous few years, reaching a peak in late 2017 with comedian Hari Kondabolu’s documentary The Problem with Apu

The Problem with Apu featured conversation and interviews with South Asian comedians, celebs, and academics on the stereotypes of South Asian individuals that were perpetuated by the Simpsons character. Kondabolu has stated that he concentrated on Apu and The Simpsons as a widely recognizable “entry point into a bigger conversation about the representation of marginalized groups & why this is essential.”

The Simpsons‘ effort to react to the documentary, 2018’s episode “No Great Read Goes Unpunished” reignited the argument. Kondabolu’s detractors accused him of not being able to take a joke, while others considered the episode itself dismissive and out of character.

Picture: Amy Sussman/Getty Images

Shortly after, Azaria voiced his desire to step aside from the character, either to permit an actor of West Indian descent to take the function, or two that Apu could be retired, as other Simpsons characters have (although normally out of respect for the death of their voice star).

” I believe the most crucial thing is we have to listen to South Asian individuals, Indian individuals in this country when they talk about what they feel and what they think about this character and what their American experience of this character has actually been,” Azaria told Stephen Colbert in a The Late Program interview.

” All we know there is I will not be doing the voice anymore, unless there’s someway to shift it or something,” Azaria said after panel for his IFC program Brockmire(through Slashfilm).

Azaria included that no choice has actually been made on what to do with Apu’s character, except that he will no longer be voiced by Azaria.

Polygon has connected to Fox Television for confirmation.