The Simpsons Showrunner Talks Apu’s Long-Awaited Return

It has been almost ten years since The Simpsons’ fans last heard Apu speak, as voice actor Hank Azaria decided to leave the character behind following major controversy and a replacement has yet to be picked. With Pamela Hayden leaving the show, seeing Jimbo Jones and Milhouse recast in doing so, many fans are left wondering whether the owner of the Kwik-E-Mart might receive a new voice and return. In a new interview with the animated series’ showrunner, Matt Selman, the question regarding whether Apu will make a comeback was addressed.

Unfortunately, Selman might not have shared the answer that many were hoping for when it comes to Apu. In an interview with Cracked, the showrunner mostly dodged the question, stating that he had nothing to say about the Kwik-E-Mark owner’s big return, “I can’t talk about Apu right now. I don’t know. I don’t know.” Since The Simpsons has been confirmed to run up to at least season forty, there is plenty of time for Mr. Nahasapeemapetilon to make a comeback. Should Apu return, it’s a certainty that Hank Azaria won’t be returning to the role.

[RELATED: The Simpsons Star Explains Why He No Longer Voices Apu]

Hank Azaria Talks Apu

In an interview earlier this year, Hank Azaria, the former voice of Apu, explained why he felt the need to leave the character behind, “In order to answer that question, do I keep doing this voice or not, required a deep dive. It wasn’t like, ‘Well, let me take a week and look into this.’ It was probably two or three years because we all just froze at The Simpsons. We had no idea what to do. The character just stopped saying anything and it became a deep dive into, ‘Well, is this racist? Does Hollywood have a tradition of doing this in one way or another? Am I part of that?”

Azaria extrapolated on this point, diving into the origins of Apu’s voice, “That voice was based on a Peter Sellers performance from a movie called The Party in the mid ’60s where he played a guy named Hrundi Bakshi in brownface. What’s the difference between [The Pink Panther’s] Inspector Clouseau’s silly French voice, Dr. Strangelove’s silly German voice, and Hrundi Bakshi’s rather silly Indian voice? It’s a question I still get asked to this day,” 

What’s Next For The Simpsons

Aside from giving a dodgy answer on Apu, Selman was able to talk about the next season of the long-running animated series, “We’re having fun digging deeper into the side characters. We’re doing a Chalmers episode where he becomes a manosphere kind of guru selling male beauty products. We have a really terrific Lisa and Marge show about the culture of thrifting that’s so popular with the kids. Another side character we get deep into is Professor Frink. We have a little bit of his emotional backstory — that’s exciting. There’s one about the Quimby family. We get deep into their backstory in a very creative way. Then we have another batch of three more Disney+ exclusives.”

Via Cracked