Share
BEVERLY HILLS — Creators of “The Simpsons” have the freedom to handle the show’s depiction of Indian shop owner Apu in the right way for their show, a top Fox executive said Thursday.
Apu, the Kwik-E-Mart clerk who has sold expired food and ripped off customers in the long-running animated Fox series, has come under fire as racist and stereotypical. The criticism flared after the recent release of the documentary “The Trouble with Apu.”
“The Simpsons,” now in its 30th year, made a stab at responding to critics in an episode that aired last April. Mom Marge is sharing a book she enjoyed as a child with daughter Lisa but finds herself editing its slurs against people of Irish and Latin American descent as she goes.
Lisa’s response: “Something that started decades ago and was applauded and inoffensive is now politically incorrect. What can you do?” A photo of Apu appears, and Marge says, “Some things will be dealt with at a later date” and Lisa adds, “if at all.”
Comedian Hari Kondabolu, who wrote “The Problem With Apu” documentary to address how marginalized groups are represented in pop culture, attacked the show’s response as sad and misguided. He was joined by a chorus of online protests.
Walden had a measured response when asked about the episode’s backlash. She called it “good information” for the creators, who she said focused on it and undoubtedly will take it into account as they further address the character.
Hank Azaria, the cast member of “The Simpsons” who voices Apu, said publicly in April he hopes the show makes a change and he’s willing to step away from the role, saying it feels like the right thing to do.
The Show Will Remain on Fox
“The Simpsons” is so much a part of the Fox network brand that there’s no plan for it to go “anywhere other than Fox,” Walden said. There are a couple of years of episodes already in progress, she added.
When she didn’t directly address whether it made financial sense for the increasingly costly show to stay on a network separate from the studio producing it, a reporter asked Newman to weigh in.
“I guess the man’s going to take the money question,” Walden said, dryly.
Earlier in the question-and-answer session, she had touted Fox’s inclusivity on screen and in the executive ranks, including 46 percent female representation among those at the vice president level and above.
RELATED TOPICS:
Selma Mayor Charged With Electioneering Violation on Election Day
2 hours ago
Stocks Rise With Tech-Related Shares, Notch Weekly Gains; Dollar Up
3 hours ago
Conflicting US-China Talks Statements Add to Global Trade Confusion
3 hours ago
Fresno Police Arrest 17 in Domestic Violence Crackdown
4 hours ago
Visalia Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for 2019 Fatal Stabbing
6 hours ago

Higher Taxes on Millionaires? Trump Says He’s Open, but Many in His Party Are Not

Ex-US Rep. George Santos Sentenced to Over 7 Years in Prison for Fraud and Identity Theft

Selma Mayor Charged With Electioneering Violation on Election Day

Stocks Rise With Tech-Related Shares, Notch Weekly Gains; Dollar Up

Conflicting US-China Talks Statements Add to Global Trade Confusion

Wired Wednesday: What’s the Future of Fresno Unified and the Superintendent Position?

Zakaria Draws Parallels Between Trump’s Tariffs, Failed 1930s Economic Policies
