Hank Azaria Apologizes For Voicing Apu On ‘The Simpsons’, Calls For More Authentic Representation In Animation

Don't miss a thing by getting the day's biggest stories sent direct to your inbox

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterHollywood is under pressure to improve representation of people with disabilities both onscreen and behind the camera.Time’s Up, an organization founded in the wake of the #MeToo movement that seeks to raise awareness of sexual mistreatment in the workplace, has added its voice to the conversation.

Crisis-hit production companies have called on the Government to introduce a levy on Netflix, Sky, Disney+ and other streaming platforms to help fund programme makers in Ireland.

faced a reckoning over the diversity of its characters. The re-casting started with Azaria’s Apu, which the white actor agreed perpetuated harmful stereotypes about Indian Americans.“Tonight I make my debut on The Simpsons as gay, Cuban Julio,” Rodriguez, a longtime performer with the Upright Citizens Brigade, wrote on Instagram last month.

A popular gay character on “The Simpsons” is getting a brand new voice.

over his publicly announced regret for voicing “The Simpsons” character Apu — penning his own tongue-in-cheek “apology.”“Not wishing to be left behind by Hank Azaria, I would like to apologise on behalf on Monty Python for all the many sketches we did making fun of white English people,” Cleese tweeted earlier this week.

John Cleese mocked "The Simpsons" actor Hank Azaria’s recent apology for the Apu character by jokingly apologizing for past Monty Python sketches.  Azaria found himself at the heart of controversy in 2017 when a documentary sparked a conversation about him, a White person, voicing the Indian-American character Apu Nahasapeemapetilon on the show since 1989.The actor appeared on the "Armchair Expert" podcast recently where he apologized and expressed how much guilt he feels to have negatively

Antonio Ferme editorHank Azaria has issued an apology for voicing Kwik-E-Mart owner Apu on “The Simpsons,” a controversial role he played for 30 years despite Apu being Indian.“I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that,” Azaria said.

Hank Azaria has been doing the work. In 2017, the 56-year-old white voice actor was publicly called out for voicing the character of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon (an Indian convenience store worker) on in a documentary titled . Azaria later stepped down from voicing the part — one of many he lends his talents to on the popular series.

who no longer voices the controversial character, says he’s taking some unconventional steps to find out why his portrayal was offensive toward the Indian community. “I was speaking at my son’s school, I was talking to the Indian kids there because I wanted to get their input,” Azaria told Shepard during Monday’s podcast.

Hank Azaria wants to apologize to every person of Indian descent for his past portrayal of "The Simpsons" character, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.

It was back in February 2020 when Hank Azaria spoke candidly in an interview with The New York Times about his decision to stop voicing The Simpsons' controversial character Kwik-E-Mart manager Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. "Once I realised that that was the way this character was thought of, I just didn’t want to participate in it anymore.

The Simpsons voice actor Hank Azaria has apologised for his longtime portrayal of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon on the series, while also acknowledging the show’s participation in “structural racism”.In an appearance on Dax Shepherd’s Armchair Expert podcast, Azaria said that he wished he had stopped playing Apu earlier (he’d been voicing the role since 1990).“I’ve had a date with destiny with this thing for about 31 years,” Azaria said.“Part of me feels like I need to go around to every single Indian