Actor Hank Azaria has apologized for voicing the Indian character Apu in The Simpsons.
In an interview on the Armchair Expert podcast, Azaria opened up about the steps he's taken as a Caucasian man to educate himself about the implications of him voicing an Indian character for so long.
Azaria, who officially stepped down from voicing the well-known character last year, has worked on The Simpsons since 1989 - also voicing other fan favorites including Chief Wiggum and the Sea Captain.
"I was speaking at my son's school, I was talking to the Indian kids there because I wanted to get their input," Azaria said. "A 17-year-old ... he's never even seen The Simpsons but knows what Apu means. It's practically a slur at this point. All he knows is that is how his people are thought of and represented to many people in this country."
"I really do apologize," Azaria continued. "It's important. I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do."
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon was a frequent face on The Simpsons, however, his role has been criticized for perpetuating harmful stereotypes about South Asian people.
Apu's role in The Simpsons was dramatically reduced back in 2016, and since then, he has only occasionally appeared as a background character.
Then, in 2020, it was announced that white actors would no longer play non-white characters on the popular sitcom.
The Simpsons creator Matt Groening said of the change in March: "It was not my idea, but I'm fine with it. Who can be against diversity? So it's great.
"However, I will just say that the actors were not hired to play specific characters," he said. "They were hired to do whatever characters we thought of. To me, the amazing thing is seeing all our brilliant actors who can do multiple voices."
The controversy caused by Apu was so great that the character even became the subject of a 2017 documentary, The Problem with Apu, which saw comedian Hari Kondabolu explore how the character had made a detrimental impact in the real world.
