APU AXED due to RACISM cries? (The Simpsons)

[Crimson Dynamo]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/news/2020/01/18/TELEMMGLPICT000000911179_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bq90JsMau qkzRhOnTEP_rlOhxMBAV4tC-qIKGU7gOf6Qk.jpeg?imwidth=500

The future of The Simpsons character Apu is in doubt after the voice actor
who plays him announced he is stepping down following a race row.

Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, played by Hank Azaria, is an Indian immigrant
who owns and owns a convenience store called Kwik-E-Mart and is known
for his catchphrase "thank you, come again".

Critics claim the character is a problematic stereotype of South Asian people,
and claim his portrayal by Azaria, who is white, was racist because of his ethnicity.

Azaria, 55, will continue to lend his voice to numerous other characters in the long-running show,
including Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum and Comic Book Guy.

"All we know there is I won't be doing the voice anymore, unless there's some way to
transition it or something," he told Slashfilm.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/news/2020/01/18/TELEMMGLPICT000221565159_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bqo88ejKH DTk6bXkPFMAlXN7ypiTBy_wsdyw40S0XPgzk.jpeg?imwidth= 500

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/01/18/thank-dont-come-simpsons-apu-will-no-longer-voiced-white-actor/

Time to end this character?

[Rob!]

This to me seems bonkers. Apu is no less stereotypical to his country than Groundskeeper Willy is.

[Niamh.]

This to me seems bonkers. Apu is no less stereotypical to his country than Groundskeeper Willy is.

Almost every character in the show is a stereotype in some way. It's ridiculous if that's why they cut the character

[GoldHeart]

They've been saying for ages that they were going to Axe Apu :rolleyes: , I think this uproar is ridiculous.

Why is it offensive all of a sudden? :bored:, It's a cartoon show with actors voicing 15 different characters each .

Nobody seems to have a problem with Grounds Keeper Willie The stereotypical "Angry Scotsman" .

What about Bumble bee man , or fat Tony etc , I think it's silly this fuss . And I never found the portrayal of Apu racist atall .

[arista]

Yes it was a Pathetic Online Bunch
who started this some time ago.

That Actor is Great.


Apu is so typical of Los Angeles 7/11 stores
I was served by them
when I was working in California.

[Cherie]

Stupidity, they are saying its a white guy voicing the role, is it a Scottish guy, IAustrian guy etc voicing the other characters... someone needs to get a grip

[Crimson Dynamo]

sD4sHDRmVz8

[Niamh.]

Stupidity, they are saying its a white guy voicing the role, is it a Scottish guy, IAustrian guy etc voicing the other characters... someone needs to get a grip

I just googled that and the same guy who does Homers voice does Willies and also Abraham "Grampa" Simpson, Barney Gumble, Krusty the Clown, Sideshow Mel, Mayor Quimby and Hans Moleman. He's American

[arista]

Yes LT
that Trouble Maker
can Stay on Netflix.


His Parents in the PBS Docu
agreed Hank is good at that job,
voicing Apu in the Simpsons

[Cherie]

I just googled that and the same guy who does Homers voice does Willies and also Abraham "Grampa" Simpson, Barney Gumble, Krusty the Clown, Sideshow Mel, Mayor Quimby and Hans Moleman. He's American

We all know why Apu is going, I heard someone on radio this morning taking off an American accent about some NFL score, and no one bats an eyelid :laugh:

[Nicky91]

shame politically correctness has to ruin everything these days

i really don't see the problem, the Simpsons is meant for light entertainment and humour

:bored:

[Oliver_W]

Fricken ridiculous. I didn't open the link, is he stepping down from the role voluntarily, or are the showrunners making the decision?
if it's the former, they should still have him as a background character and just use old voiceclips or something.

[Crimson Dynamo]

maybe Harry can get Meghan a job of doing the voice....

[arista]

maybe Harry can get Meghan a job of doing the voice....


Yes the Simpsons could do a Test
on one episode.

I bet they would get Extra Viewers

[Tom4784]

From the stories I've read, it seems like they'll look to cast an indian actor to take over the role.

I think it's fair, Simpsons is a product of it's time and if it was still meant to be as edgy as it was considered in it's earlier days then such things would be just considered as part of that humour but it's a show with a wide general audience and it has to be mindful of that and the excuse that it's an old show doesn't mean much when it's still a current show.

[GoldHeart]

From the stories I've read, it seems like they'll look to cast an indian actor to take over the role.

I think it's fair, Simpsons is a product of it's time and if it was still meant to be as edgy as it was considered in it's earlier days then such things would be just considered as part of that humour but it's a show with a wide general audience and it has to be mindful of that and the excuse that it's an old show doesn't mean much when it's still a current show.

Groundskeeper willie the angry scotsman is voiced by an american guy who also does the voice of Krusty the clown who's raspy voiced and jewish . Should they also be axed??? :bored: :facepalm:. What about bumble bee man the slapstick hispanic character ? . Or Dr Hibbert a black guy who's actually voiced by a white guy?

it's interesting how Simpsons is bearing the brunt , what about other tv shows with more edgier borderline humour? :suspect: . family guy with the japanese news reporter

LVpSQgMssTQ

[Shaun]

Should they also be axed??? :bored: :facepalm:.

well the whole show should've been axed 15 years ago, so...

[GoldHeart]

well the whole show should've been axed 15 years ago, so...

That's fine , I also think the show has been milked alot and should of ended . But it's not fair for 1 particular character to be axed just because all of a sudden we're being told it's "offensive" :facepalm: . Like i said most of the characters are exaggerated stereotypes anyway so why are they picking on Apu ??.

And other tv shows have done far worse with their minority characters .

[arista]

Shaun
Simpsons is doing OK
bringing in Top guest Stars.

How dare you say sack them all.
All the Staff that go into that Production

[arista]

"Groundskeeper Willie the angry Scotsman
is voiced by an American guy "

Yes great Job that American does


Yes Typical Crazy Scotsman
There are Loads like him

[Crimson Dynamo]

https://media3.giphy.com/media/Av72crBYNiEYo/giphy.gif

[user104658]

Groundskeeper willie the angry scotsman is voiced by an american guy who also does the voice of Krusty the clown who's raspy voiced and jewish . Should they also be axed??? :bored: :facepalm:. What about bumble bee man the slapstick hispanic character ? . Or Dr Hibbert a black guy who's actually voiced by a white guy?

it's interesting how Simpsons is bearing the brunt , what about other tv shows with more edgier borderline humour? :suspect: . family guy with the japanese news reporter

LVpSQgMssTQ

TO BE FRRR...

Animated shows like Family Guy, South Park (****ty wok? :hehe: ), Rick & Morty etc. are made for and aimed at adults... they are explicitly NOT kids shows... whereas The Simpsons while it does have in-jokes aimed at adults, has always been aimed at families in a family-friendly time slot.

Leading me into my main point;

Is the stereotyping racist? Yes, objectively it undeniably is, that's the point. Should racial stereotyping be an acceptable part of parody/satire? YES absolutely it should... most people understand what satire is.

Or rather... most ADULTS understand what satire is.

So it's OK in entertainment aimed at adults.

I'm not conviced at all that it's suitable for shows that are aimed at "the whole family". So IMO The Simpsons does need to decide which it is... it can rebrand itself as NOT being for kids any more and a satire aimed at adults, or it can toe the line a bit more in terms of political correctness. Because tbqfh kids DON'T get the joke and buy into stereotypes as being literal, quite easily.

[Shaun]

Shaun
Simpsons is doing OK
bringing in Top guest Stars.

How dare you say sack them all.
All the Staff that go into that Production

arista don't pretend you care about the staff x

[arista]

arista don't pretend you care about the staff x


I do
I used work in California.



Feel The Force,

[Jigs]

This is so silly, stereotypes are everywhere and they can also be the very reason why certain characters are funny in these shows. As far as I know Apu's character has never been portrayed in a way that actively/deliberately suppresses or makes a laughing stock out of South Asian people.

In this case, should we fire Dev off of Corrie too?

I was also coming here to bring up Tricia Takanawa but I was beaten to it!

I guess my point is that these characters exist everywhere. No one has ever said that these types of characters represent the entire population of a certain ethnic background. However, these stereotypes exist for a reason and the reason is that these people DO exist. East Asian nail tech women and South Asian cornershop owners are realities of our society. As long as they aren't represented in a degrading manner I find it silly to erase these characters off of TV programs.

[Scarlett.]

Didn't this happen last year?

[Niamh.]

Didn't this happen last year?

I actually thought the story sounded familiar as well :laugh:

[GoldHeart]

TO BE FRRR...

Animated shows like Family Guy, South Park (****ty wok? :hehe: ), Rick & Morty etc. are made for and aimed at adults... they are explicitly NOT kids shows... whereas The Simpsons while it does have in-jokes aimed at adults, has always been aimed at families in a family-friendly time slot.

Leading me into my main point;

Is the stereotyping racist? Yes, objectively it undeniably is, that's the point. Should racial stereotyping be an acceptable part of parody/satire? YES absolutely it should... most people understand what satire is.

Or rather... most ADULTS understand what satire is.

So it's OK in entertainment aimed at adults.

I'm not conviced at all that it's suitable for shows that are aimed at "the whole family". So IMO The Simpsons does need to decide which it is... it can rebrand itself as NOT being for kids any more and a satire aimed at adults, or it can toe the line a bit more in terms of political correctness. Because tbqfh kids DON'T get the joke and buy into stereotypes as being literal, quite easily.

Simpsons was never entirely a kids show , it has pushed humour and some of the jokes are clearly aimed at older kids and adults. I don't know what the latest episodes are like , but they've always tried to play it safe and i've noticed with the censorship even little things that be be seen as rude or edgy has been cut out of simpsons episodes before watershed :rolleyes:.

I would not class The simpsons as solely for children , yes kids watch it but so do adults . The Rugrats & pepper pig are kids shows .

And yes we all know Family Guy & South park are for adults( i'm not a big fan of family guy and i hate south park) , but plenty of youngsters and kids still watch them despite the humour and jokes being 18+ .

So you could argue that those tv shows are offensive and inappropriate and will reinforce daft stereotypes ??? yet those seem to be fine ?? :bored: .

[Nicky91]

yes i can also remember a thread like this being there last year :think:

[arista]

Didn't this happen last year?


Yes it was in the news
last year.
Of Course then Hank
went on many talk shows
trying to make the story more fair.

[Tom4784]

Groundskeeper willie the angry scotsman is voiced by an american guy who also does the voice of Krusty the clown who's raspy voiced and jewish . Should they also be axed??? :bored: :facepalm:. What about bumble bee man the slapstick hispanic character ? . Or Dr Hibbert a black guy who's actually voiced by a white guy?

it's interesting how Simpsons is bearing the brunt , what about other tv shows with more edgier borderline humour? :suspect: . family guy with the japanese news reporter

LVpSQgMssTQ

Willie and Krusty are white characters voiced by a white man, Hubert's not exactly a stereotype and while Bumble Bee man isn't great, he hasn't caused controversy amongst mexican people while people of indian descent have taken issue with Apu.

Cartoon Network once banned Speedy Gonzalez cartoons in the 90s out of fear of offending mexican people but in truth, Speedy Gonzalez was a very popular character in Mexico and there was a successful campaign in Mexico and other latin countries to reinstate the cartoon. There's been no such outrage about the Bumble Bee man from mexican people from what I know of so there's not a problem there.

This isn't about 'PC gone mad' it's about people who are affected by a stereotype in a show that's aimed a general audience. Family Guy is not a kids' show, Tricia Takanawa is a satire based character that mocks stereotypes. The Simpsons has become a family show and like TS said, satire is a harder concept for kids to grasp so they'll take Apu for what he is without understanding the humour behind the character.

An indian stereotype character in a show made for all audiences has offended indian people and so they'll likely recast the role with an indian actor, that's all this story is. All the pretend outrage from white people about Apu is unneeded.

[Crimson Dynamo]

Didn't this happen last year?

no this is updated news

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/01/18/entertainment/apu-hank-azaria-simpsons-trnd/index.html

[GoldHeart]

Willie and Krusty are white characters voiced by a white man, Hubert's not exactly a stereotype and while Bumble Bee man isn't great, he hasn't caused controversy amongst mexican people while people of indian descent have taken issue with Apu.

Cartoon Network once banned Speedy Gonzalez cartoons in the 90s out of fear of offending mexican people but in truth, Speedy Gonzalez was a very popular character in Mexico and there was a successful campaign in Mexico and other latin countries to reinstate the cartoon. There's been no such outrage about the Bumble Bee man from mexican people from what I know of so there's not a problem there.

This isn't about 'PC gone mad' it's about people who are affected by a stereotype in a show that's aimed a general audience. Family Guy is not a kids' show, Tricia Takanawa is a satire based character that mocks stereotypes. The Simpsons has become a family show and like TS said, satire is a harder concept for kids to grasp so they'll take Apu for what he is without understanding the humour behind the character.

An indian stereotype character in a show made for all audiences has offended indian people and so they'll likely recast the role with an indian actor, that's all this story is. All the pretend outrage from white people about Apu is unneeded.

But most of the characters are stereotypes :shrug: :facepalm: , the actor voicing Willie is not really scottish they just have the same ethnicity so surely scottish people could take offence to the angry scotsman stereotype??? .

Apu is a cartoon character, there's nothing offensive about him . But why does Bumblebee man get let off the hook ? with his "no me gusta" act and slapstick humour? . Just seems contradicting to me , and feels like people just want to make a fuss for the sake of it .

[Nicky91]

http://www.thisisbigbrother.com/forums/showthread.php?t=350869

yep we were right

[Crimson Dynamo]

http://www.thisisbigbrother.com/forums/showthread.php?t=350869

yep we were right

no this thread is about the voice of Apu hanging up his pricing gun, the other thread was not about that

[arista]

no this thread is about the voice of Apu hanging up his pricing gun, the other thread was not about that



Yes my thread was more Crude
how Apu was Axed



This thread has some Depth.......

[Jigs]

If the character will remain unchanged I don't see why there is outrage over who voices him. Same character, same jokes, same stereotypes, being enjoyed by the same universal audience. If you'll allow people of all ethnicities to laugh at the stereotypes, I don't see the fuss over who tells the jokes.

[Tom4784]

But most of the characters are stereotypes :shrug: :facepalm: , the actor voicing Willie is not really scottish they just have the same ethnicity so surely scottish people could take offence to the angry scotsman stereotype??? .

Apu is a cartoon character, there's nothing offensive about him . But why does Bumblebee man get let off the hook ? with his "no me gusta" act and slapstick humour? . Just seems contradicting to me , and feels like people just want to make a fuss for the sake of it .

There's nothing offensive to you, you have no right to declare that an Indian stereotype cannot offend Indian people.

The point is that they're recasting Apu because the Indian character offended Indian people. Scottish people aren't up in arms about Willie, Mexican people aren't angry about the Bumble Bee Man but Indian people have taken exception to Apu. That's the difference. They won't change anything else unless people who are affected by those stereotypes rise up about it.

Again, Bumble Bee Man hasn't caused a stink with Mexican people and, like in the Speedy Gonzalez example I posted, if the creators did assume that character was offensive to Mexicans and acted preemptively, it could create a bigger stink with Mexican people who may actually like the character.

It might just be a lot of 'fuss' to you but you're ultimately not affected it by it. You're outraged because you're taking the whole 'PC GONE MAD' angle.

[Oliver_W]

If the character will remain unchanged I don't see why there is outrage over who voices him.

No-one is "outraged", it's just a stupid pointless change.

[Tom4784]

No-one is "outraged", it's just a stupid pointless change.

Plenty of Indian people are outraged about it, Oliver. It's not a stupid or pointless change to them.

[Cherie]

Plenty of Indian people are outraged about it, Oliver. It's not a stupid or pointless change to them.

And yet not one rang in this morning to any radio show that discussed this to complain, so as a snapshot of outrage, it feels like white saviour thing

[Tony Montana]

Didn't this happen last year?

That's what I was thinking. :laugh:

[Crimson Dynamo]

I wonder how else could Apu have been portrayed as that character?

[Oliver_W]

Plenty of Indian people are outraged about it, Oliver. It's not a stupid or pointless change to them.

Who? I've not heard of any. As much as I hate the term "SJW", it seems to be only white "SJWs" bitching about it.

There's nothing on their end to be offended about - he's a happy family man and business owner, nothing negative at all.

[Scarlett.]

Hmm, replacing him with an actual Indian voice actor sounds like a pretty good move, that way we keep the character, someone gets a new job, and the controversy is over.

[user104658]

Hmm, replacing him with an actual Indian voice actor sounds like a pretty good move, that way we keep the character, someone gets a new job, and the controversy is over.

Indeed; and I doubt the current guy would even get a pay cut, given that he voices other characters that are (other than the occasional episode) much more prominent than Apu.

[Scarlett.]

Indeed; and I doubt the current guy would even get a pay cut, given that he voices other characters that are (other than the occasional episode) much more prominent than Apu.

Yep, its pretty much a win-win for everyone, sure Apu might end up sounding a little different, but I imagine the new VA would try to mirror Hank's perfomance, at least at the start.

[Ammi]

...it sounds like a unanimous decision that everyone is totally happy about...



"We all made the decision together... We all agreed on it. We all feel like it's the right thing and good about it."

[Jessica.]

I have always loved the character and I would fully support a switch to him being voiced by an Indian actor.

[Ammi]

I have always loved the character and I would fully support a switch to him being voiced by an Indian actor.

...or a storyline around a complete change of voice is another possibility I’ve read...

[Marsh.]

This is so silly, stereotypes are everywhere and they can also be the very reason why certain characters are funny in these shows. As far as I know Apu's character has never been portrayed in a way that actively/deliberately suppresses or makes a laughing stock out of South Asian people.

In this case, should we fire Dev off of Corrie too?

:suspect: If the stereotypes are the very reason they're funny, then they are making a laughing stock out of them.

Also, Dev is not a stereotype so an odd comparison. He's also British with an English accent.

[GoldHeart]

I have always loved the character and I would fully support a switch to him being voiced by an Indian actor.

Then should groundskeeper Willie be voiced by a Scottish guy ? For the authenticity? :idc: .

Surely this must mean bumble Bee guy has to be voiced by a real Mexican guy ? And Doctor Nick "hi everybody" by a latino guy ? .

Anyway whatever , I never found Apu racist but good luck to whoever voices him :shrug: .

[Marsh.]

Then should groundskeeper Willie be voiced by a Scottish guy ? For the authenticity? :idc: .

Surely this must mean bumble Bee guy has to be voiced by a real Mexican guy ? And Doctor Nick "hi everybody" by a latino guy ? .

Anyway whatever , I never found Apu racist but good luck to whoever voices him :shrug: .

But it doesn't matter since it's not mocking you. The people the stereotype is aimed at have taken issue, as is their right.

[Marsh.]

Who? I've not heard of any. As much as I hate the term "SJW", it seems to be only white "SJWs" bitching about it.

There's nothing on their end to be offended about

So... you've not heard any so they don't exist?

And, Indian people have nothing to be offended about because white Oliver from England said there's nothing to be offended about? I think that's up to them to decide, you know, what offends them.

And yet not one rang in this morning to any radio show that discussed this to complain, so as a snapshot of outrage, it feels like white saviour thing

Which radio show?

[Crimson Dynamo]

So... you've not heard any so they don't exist?

And, Indian people have nothing to be offended about because white Oliver from England said there's nothing to be offended about? I think that's up to them to decide, you know, what offends them.



Which radio show?

i listened to LBC and no one phoned in offended

all the calls called it nonsense (a few were SE Asian)

[Marsh.]

i listened to LBC and no one phoned in offended

all the calls called it nonsense (a few were SE Asian)

So, an English radio station?

Something tells me the producers weren't really making radical changes to a 30+ year old show based on the UK viewership.

[GoldHeart]

But it doesn't matter since it's not mocking you. The people the stereotype is aimed at have taken issue, as is their right.

Well some people are probably offended by Trisha the Japanese news reporter in Family guy ,or the black guy that shouts. But those seem perfectly fine as they get the pass as "satire adult humour" :bored: .

Like I said good luck to the new voice actor, I don't think Hank Azaria who btw voices Alot of diverse Simpsons characters ever meant to offend anyone . He's a talented actor.

Apu is a popular character, there's nothing demeaning about him :shrug: .

[Marsh.]

Apu is a popular character, there's nothing demeaning about him :shrug: .

But, again, it's not demeaning to you as it's not aimed at you.

[Marsh.]

Well some people are probably offended by Trisha the Japanese news reporter in Family guy ,or the black guy that shouts. But those seem perfectly fine as they get the pass as "satire adult humour" :bored:

Really? Have they bothered complaining?

[GoldHeart]

But, again, it's not demeaning to you as it's not aimed at you.

Please don't make assumptions Marsh as you don't know my background.

Family guy makes fun of everyone and it seems ok :bored: .

[GoldHeart]

Really? Have they bothered complaining?

Point I'm making is family guy amongst other TV shows are more of that risque humour , yet they seem fine as they get the " adult satire shield " to protect them :whistle:

[Marsh.]

Please don't make assumptions Marsh as you don't know my background.

So, suddenly you're Indian?

[Marsh.]

Point I'm making is family guy amongst other TV shows are more of that risque humour , yet they seem fine as they get the " adult satire shield " to protect them :whistle:

No, the point I'm making is have those offended groups complained?

If not, nothing is going to change.

[GoldHeart]

So, suddenly you're Indian?

:facepalm: forget it

[Marsh.]

:facepalm: forget it

So no. :idc:

[GoldHeart]

No, the point I'm making is have those offended groups complained?

If not, nothing is going to change.

But those character stereotypes can still be seen as offensive , and TV shows like family doesn't give a damn :rolleyes:.

The only time they've been in hot water is when they made risky Jokes about abortion ,self harm etc . But again it changed nothing. If anything they pushed boundaries more.

[GoldHeart]

So no. :idc:

Never said I was white which you obviously assume :hee: .

[Marsh.]

But those character stereotypes can still be seen as offensive , and TV shows like family doesn't give a damn :rolleyes:.


I never said they couldn't be offensive, I said have the people those stereotypes are aimed at took offence? If so, have they made their feelings known?

That's literally the only difference. The Simpsons are altering one of their characters due to a backlash from the people it is offending.

[Marsh.]

Never said I was white which you obviously assume :hee: .

In what universe is "not Indian" white?

[Livia]

In future I insist the character of Krusty is played by a Jewish actor.

https://puzzledpagan.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/022.jpg?w=300&h=231

[Marsh.]

In future I insist the character of Krusty is played by a Jewish actor.

https://puzzledpagan.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/022.jpg?w=300&h=231

Sorry but Meghan is pencilled in for that part, you'll have to find your own Voice over work. x

[Livia]

Sorry but Meghan is pencilled in for that part, you'll have to find your own Voice over work. x

A black woman playing a white Jew? I'll fight her...

[GoldHeart]

I guess the portrayal of a raspy voice Jewish messy clown is ok ?

[Tom4784]

I guess the portrayal of a raspy voice Jewish messy clown is ok ?

As it's been stated to you multiple times by this point, Apu's voice will be changed because of a backlash from Indian people over the portrayal of Apu. If there's no real outrage from Jewish people then there's no reason to change Krusty.

I honestly don't really understand why you're so mad about this, it doesn't affect you at all.

[GoldHeart]

As it's been stated to you multiple times by this point, Apu's voice will be changed because of a backlash from Indian people over the portrayal of Apu. If there's no real outrage from Jewish people then there's no reason to change Krusty.

I honestly don't really understand why you're so mad about this, it doesn't affect you at all.

I never said i was "mad " about it i just don't think Apu is racist but whatever :idc:

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

Why is this show still going :skull:

[GoldHeart]

Why is this show still going :skull:

I've been wondering the same thing tbh , it was supposed to end at season 25 or something but now it's past 30 seasons!! :facepalm:.

[Beso]

Jim Davidson is the new voice of apu

[Mystic Mock]

Apu is an iconic character for The Simpsons, stereotype or not they make him likeable to me.

[arista]

Jim Davidson is the new voice of apu



Yes he could do it.

[arista]

Why is this show still going :skull:


Because it Educates
the Young Folk.


They Need a one off Gay Special Star
in it, to make you happy.

[arista]

In future I insist the character of Krusty is played by a Jewish actor.

https://puzzledpagan.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/022.jpg?w=300&h=231


I am Sure that can be arranged