Hank Azaria Will No Longer Voice Apu on 'The Simpsons'

Hank Azaria is taking a step back from one of his roles on The Simpsons.

The voice actor will no longer portray Apu, the show’s Indian Kwik-E-Mart proprietor who has been a part of the series since its first season.

“All we know there is I won’t be doing the voice anymore, unless there’s some way to transition it or something. We all made the decision together… We all agreed on it. We all feel like it’s the right thing and good about it,” Hank told Slashfilm.

He added, “What they’re going to do with the character is their call. It’s up to them, and they haven’t sorted it out yet. All we’ve agreed on is I won’t do the voice anymore.”

The decision comes after the character was criticized in a 2017 documentary titled The Problem With Apu, which noted the character was portrayed by a white actor and led to demeaning stereotypes of Indian-Americans.

After its release, Hank volunteered to leave the role and “help transition it into something new.”