Hank Azaria Says Stepping Aside from Voicing Apu ‘Feels Like the Right Thing to Do’

Here’s a clip from last night’s Late Show, where Stephen Colbert chats with Hank Azaria about the controversy surrounding his voicing Apu on The Simpsons that was brought to the forefront thanks to Hari Kondabolu’s truTV documentary The Problem with Apu. Azaria also addresses how The Simpsons recently responded to the controversy in an episode that upset many viewers and ultimately seems to agree it was a bad look, telling Colbert, “That’s certainly not the way I feel about it, and that’s definitely not the message that I want to send.� As for what the show should do about the character now, Azaria tells Colbert he’s “given this a lot of thought,� and it all comes down to listening to South Asian voices more: “As you know, in television terms, listening to voices means inclusion in the writers’ room. I really want to see Indian, South Asian writer/writers in the room. Not in a token way, but genuinely informing whatever new direction this character may take, including how it is voiced or not voiced,� he says. “I’m perfectly willing and happy to step aside or help transition it into something new. I really hope that’s what The Simpsons does. It not only makes sense, but it just feels like the right thing to do to me.�