Apu From "The Simpsons" Will Be Phased Out After Racism Debate

Apu's days on The Simpsons are numbered.

Despite owning Springfield's iconic Kwik-E-Mart for 28 years, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon (voiced by Hank Azaria) will reportedly be written out of the long-running cartoon series, The Simpsons.

Adi Shankar, an Indian-American producer, created a competition for writers to produce a script that would see Apu's character shift into something more respectful and representative. His plan was to get the creators of The Simpsons to produce the winning script but he's since told IndieWire that the show has other plans in mind.

"I got some disheartening news back, that I've verified from multiple sources now: They're going to drop the Apu character altogether," Shankar told IndieWire.

"They aren't going to make a big deal out of it, or anything like that, but they'll drop him altogether just to avoid the controversy."

The issue with Apu's character comes after several South Asian commentators criticised the character for being nothing more than a racist stereotype voiced by a "white guy".

In 2017, a documentary by comedian Hari Kondabulu, The Problem With Apu, tackled this issue and ultimately, came to the conclusion that, despite Apu being a funny character, he isn't an accurate or respectful representation.

"Apu reflected how America viewed us: servile, devious, goofy," Kondabulu said in the documentary. 

"A white dude [Hank Azaria] created a stereotypical Indian voice, and a bunch of white writers in the room laughed at said stereotypical Indian voice, and this led to the creation of my childhood bully and a walking insult to my parents."

Matt Groening, the show's creator, told USA Today that he doesn't really care for the criticisms of Apu's character.

"Not really," Groening responded.

"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."

But in contrast, Hank Azaria told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show that he's upset to hear that people might've been bullied and would happily step aside as Apu's voice.

"The idea that anyone, young or old, past or present, was bullied or teased based on the character of Apu, it just really makes me sad," Azaria told The Late Show.

"It was certainly not my intention. I wanted to spread laughter and joy with this character."

Fox has yet to release a statement about the changes.

If you want to see it for yourself, you can catch The Problem With Apu on SBS Demand.

Header Image: Fox