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9 Years Later, The Simpsons' Controversial Character Officially Returns

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9 Years Later, The Simpsons' Controversial Character Officially Returns

In January 2020, Hank Azaria stepped down from voicing one of the most iconic characters on The Simpsons, Kwik-E-Mart owner Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. The actor and the show's writers agreed that the portrayal of Apu was charged with racial stereotypes, and they apologized while the character and his family were quietly moved to the background of the show. On Oct. 18, 2026, in the season 38 episode "The Revengening," Apu officially returned to The Simpsons with a new voice actor.

Sunil Malhotra (The Legend of Vox Machina, Grey's Anatomy) is the new voice of Apu. The actor talked at length with the show's producers to decide how to make the character culturally appropriate and respectful for people of Indian and South Asian heritage. "Whether the producers knew it or not, I was prepared to walk away," Malhotra said in an interview with Variety, remembering how he renounced his first professional job because he was asked to portray a stereotypical Hindu person. But the actor was positively impressed by the showrunners' dedication to handling Apu's return with the utmost care: "It was the beginning of a deeply collaborative experience that I hope is equally satisfying for longtime fans of The Simpsons and for other South Asian kids who, like me, stopped watching at some point along the way."

The Apu controversy began in 2017 with Indian American comedian Hari Kondabolu's documentary The Problem With Apu , which argued that the character's stereotypical portrayal had been deeply damaging to people of South Asian heritage, to the point that "Apu" began being used as a racial slur.


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