I won’t pretend that I immediately understood the controversy behind Hank Azaria (a white man) voicing Apu Nahasapeemapetilon (an Indian man). The Simpsons and Apu had been a part of my life for as long as I could remember, so how could it be bad? First and foremost, that’s a dumb way of thinking. Luckily, all it took was a bit of context to change my mind. Not only is Apu an insane stereotype of an Indian man, but it’s also not like American shows and movies are constantly throwing out parts to Indian actors. If they do, they are often stereotypical. Apu is a stereotype on a large scale, and the show’s creators were right to stop using him, even if they have complained about it.
Mike Reiss has been a writer and producer on The Simpsons since the beginning. I once saw him do a one-man show in 2019, where he addressed the controversy around Apu, specifically brought on by comedian Hari Kondabolu’s documentary The Problem With Apu, which highlighted the character as an example of “brownvoice.” When I say he addressed it, I mean he complained about it, which was a real bummer. It was made even worse by the fact that he called on someone who was obviously a plant in the audience to ask the question. He was a young person of color who nodded along agreeingly as Reiss blamed everybody but the show for the issue.
The annoying aspect of this is that you don’t have to blame someone. The Simpsons has been around for almost 40 years. It began at a time when things weren’t done correctly. There’s no need to fight for that. You don’t have to stand your ground and blame everyone else. Just admit you made a mistake, fix it, and move on. It’s so much goddamn easier. Hank Azaria has taken that route, stepping back from the voice and admitting it was horrendous that he used to do it. Thanks to the influence of Azaria and the show, which kicked off a landslide of sorts, seeing shows like Big Mouth and Family Guy appropriately recast several characters. Now, the returning King of the Hill has done the same.
It was first revealed that Ronny Chieng (a Malaysian man) would be joining the show as Kahn Souphanousinphone, who was originally voiced by Toby Huss (a white man). This was a welcome change, and now, the changes keep on coming. Indiewire is reporting that Ted Wassanasong, Chane Wassanasong, and Joseph Gribble have all been recast with actors Kenneth Choi, Ki Hong Lee, and Tai Leclaire, respectively. Despite the Wassanasongs being Laotian and Gribble being half Native American, all the characters were previously voiced by white actors who already had roles on the show.
Show creator Gregg Daniels has explained they wouldn’t cast the characters the same way today as they did in 1997, and he put his money where his mouth is. And, to be fair, when the show debuted, John Redcorn, a Native American character on the show, was voiced by Native American Actors. Primarily, Jonathan Joss, who was tragically murdered back in June. In addition to the cast replacements, actors Anthony “Critic” Campos and Keith David (!!!) will be joining the show as well.
I was already pretty excited for the show’s return, but seeing it try to do things the right way cranks that excitement to eleven. It’s so easy to complain and blame others when you make a mistake. Correcting mistakes takes hard work, and that should be acknowledged. We don’t need to, like, throw them a parade, but a bit of enthusiasm goes a long way and may lead others to do the right thing as well.
