On Monday’s episode of the Armchair expert podcast, The Simpsons actor Hank Azaria apologized for participating in ‘structural racism’, through his years-long rendition of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.
While the Emmy winner continues to speak out and give voice to other parts of Fox comedy, including Moe Szyslak, and gave voice to Apu with his first appearance in 1990, he announced in February last year that he would no longer play the role. The decision arose as part of a broad cultural shift in animation, as the industry came to the belief that characters of color should not be voiced by white actors and other people. Simpsons roles are also recreated.
In the course of his conversation with Armchair Experts hosts Dax Shephard and Monica Padman, Azaria said he wished he had left him years ago before leaving the Apu role. “I had an appointment with fate about 31 years ago,” he said. ‘Part of me feels that I have to go to every Indian in this country and apologize personally, and sometimes I do when it comes up. ‘
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Of course, Azaria took a moment to specifically apologize to Padman, the Indian-American actor and podcast, whose community has done a disservice to his race-sensitive caricature of the store owner. “I know you did not ask for it, but it is important,” he said. “I apologize for my part in creating and participating in it.”
Azaria has also called for other animated series to make changes when it comes to representing their voice producers. “If it’s an Indian character, a Latinx character or a black character, let’s let the person hear the character,” he said. “It’s more authentic, they bring their experience to it and let’s not take away work from people who do not have enough.”
In 1988, Azaria is asked if he can do an Indian accent, which led to the portrayal of Apu. Eventually, the actor would model his performance as a result of Peter Seller’s turn in 1968, The party, which has also been criticized for using racial stereotypes, along with the use of “brownface” by Sellers. The actor first saw that film at the age of 15. ‘When I saw it, there was no difference between how funny Peter Sellers is as a French guy. [in The Pink Panther], or a German guy in Dr Strangelove, or as Hrundi V. Bakshi in The party. It’s just funny, ”he recalls. ‘I’m a prospective voter and can do the accent, so there’s no difference to me either.
“What I obviously do not realize,” he added, “is that I can feel such a white guy, because I do not live with the consequences of things at all.”
Azaria will acknowledge these consequences and decide to step down from the role of Apu after taking on Hari Kondabolu’s The problem with Apu. The 2017 documentary will lead to many people calling Azaria for him Simpsons roll. “I’m canceled, but you want to put it anyway,” he recalls, “and really intensely.”
At some point in his career, Azaria remarked, he would have responded to this anger with his own anger. However, thanks to his experiences with Alcoholics Anonymous, he knew he had to ‘keep quiet’, listen and learn in the aftermath of criticism. “If I had not become sober, I promise you, one night I would not have needed much wine to have my feelings, and to fire a tweet that I feel justified in firing,” he admitted. . “Boy, was I glad I had a system in place to look at this thing.”
From the actor’s perspective, Apu was a character created with good intentions. “We tried to do a funny, thoughtful character,” he said. ‘[But] just because there were good intentions does not mean I did not really have negative consequences. ”
Created by James L. Brooks, Matt Groening and Sam Simon, The Simpsons follows the adventures of a working-class family of the same name in the city of Springfield. The series is currently on its way to the end of the 32nd season and has been renewed for two more.