The Simpsons might not be ready to address the problem with Apu, but Hank Azaria, who has played the character for nearly 30 years, says he is. Comedian Hari Kondabolus 2017 documentary sparked a conversation around the Kwik-E-Mart proprietor, an Indian man who speaks with a heavy accent—and the chatter has given Azaria a lot to think about. Though the actor ultimately decided not to participate in the documentary himself, he has been ruminating on the subject at least since last winter—and on The Late Show Tuesday, he told host Stephen Colbert that he understands viewers frustration.

“Ive tried to express this before,” Azaria said. “You know, the idea that anybody was—young or old, past or present—was bullied or teased based on the character of Apu, it just really makes me sad. It was certainly not my intention; I wanted to spread laughter and joy with this character, and the idea that its brought pain and suffering in any way, that it was used to marginalize people, its upsetting. Genuinely.”

Earlier this month, the long-running comedy attempted to address the controversy—but ended up leaving some fans even more frustrated. In the episode, Marge read Lisa an old book that had been re-written to be less problematic—but Lisa was unmoved. When Marge asked if there was a solution to this problem, Lisa broke the fourth wall: “Its hard to say. Something that started decades ago, and was applauded and inoffensive, is now politically incorrect. What can you do?” she said, before turning to face her nightstand, where a framed photo of Apu sat. It was captioned with an old Simpsons catchphrase: “Dont have a cow!”

Azaria told Colbert that he was not involved in writing or filming the episode, and worked to distance himself from it on Tuesday. “If anybody came away from that segment feeling like they should lighten up or take a joke better or grow a thicker skin . . . thats certainly not the way I feel about it, and thats definitely not the message that I want to send them,” he said.

What does Azaria suggest, then? “Ive given this a lot of thought—really a lot of thought,” the actor said. “And as I say, my eyes have been opened. And I think the most important thing is we have to listen to South Asian people, Indian people in this country when they talk about what they feel and how they think about this character—what their American experience of it has been. As you know, in television terms, listening to voices means inclusion in the writers room.”

Azaria said he doesnt want to see South Asian writers working on The Simpsons “in a token way,” but instead hopes that they would be able to contribute and inform whatever new path Apu might forge. He also wants them to express thoughts on how the character gets voiced—even if that means stepping down from the role himself. “Im perfectly willing and happy to step aside or help transition it into something new,” Azaria said. “I really hope thats what this instance does. It just, it not only makes sense, but it just feels like the right thing to do to me.”

Last year, Kondabolu suggested a few remedies for Apu, including providing him “some upward mobility” or perhaps adding another character of South Asian descent to the show, someone whose socioeconomic background is different from Apus—perhaps, say, a billionaire like Mr. Burns. Another option? Give Apus kids a more prominent role on the series. “Have them represent us,” Kondabolu said. “Have writers who can write to that voice.” It sounds like Azaria has come around to that idea; now its up to the Fox comedy to follow.

Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Full ScreenPhotos:22 Movies and TV Shows That Will Save Us in 2018

Westworld (Season 2)

HBO is once again hoping youll ignore the big Game of Thrones-shaped hole in its schedule and turn your attention back to the sci-fi mind game that is Westworld. The Emmy-nominated series, starring Evan Rachel Wood and Thandie Newton, is ready to confound you once again in its second season. Until its spring 2018 premiere, take a trip back in time and revisit nine burning questions we still have about the finale.Photo: By John P. Johnson/HBO.

Grown-ish

Yara Shahidi takes the lead in this youthful Black-ish spin-off set to air on Freeform starting Jan. 3, 2018. In this series, Zoey is finally off to college, stumbling through cringeworthy rites of passage like embarrassing herself at a frat party and hiding secrets from her parents.Photo: By Eric Liebowitz/Freeform.

Superhero Smorgasbord

Every superhero you love is coming out with a new movie in 2018. In no particular order, get ready for a bounty that includes: Black Panther,Avengers: Infinity War,Deadpool 2,The New Mutants,X-Men: Dark Phoenix,Ant-Man and the Wasp,Venom, and Aquaman.Photo: By Zade Rosenthal/©Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Everett Collection.

The Winter Olympics

Tis the season to watch a bunch of perfect human specimens fight for tiny gold medallions. This years Winter Olympics will kick off on Feb. 9, 2018 in Pyeongchang, South Korea.Photo: By Julian Finney/Getty Images.

The Chi

After breaking out on Master of None and winning a historic Emmy for one of this years best TV episodes, Lena Waithe is ready to claim her spot in the prestige-TV realm. Enter The Chi, her Showtime series about young people coming of age in Chicago, set to premiere on Jan. 7.Photo: By Matt Dinerstein/SHOWTIME.

A Wrinkle in Time

The classic Madeleine LEngle tale is finally coming to the big screen on March 9, 2018, thanks to Disney and director Ava DuVernay. The sci-fi story about a girl tesseracting her way through time to find her missing father will star newcomer Storm Reid alongside stars like Oprah Winfrey,Mindy Kaling,Reese Witherspoon, and Chris Pine.Photo: By Atsushi Nishijima/Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios.

Solo: A Star Wars Story

After some catastrophic ups and downs, Han Solos origin story will finally be revealed to us on May 25, 2018. The Star Wars spin-off stars Alden Ehrenreich as the galactic smuggler and also features Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian and Emilia Clarke playing a mysterious character named Kira.Photo: From Lucasfilm Ltd./Everett Collection.PreviousNext

Laura BradleyLaura Bradley is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.

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Vanity Fair

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The Simpsons might not be ready to address the problem with Apu, but Hank Azaria, who has played the character for nearly 30 years, says he is. Comedian Hari Kondabolus 2017 documentary sparked a conversation around the Kwik-E-Mart proprietor, an Indian man who speaks with a heavy accent—and the chatter has given Azaria a lot to think about. Though the actor ultimately decided not to participate in the documentary himself, he has been ruminating on the subject at least since last winter—and on The Late Show Tuesday, he told host Stephen Colbert that he understands viewers frustration.

“Ive tried to express this before,” Azaria said. “You know, the idea that anybody was—young or old, past or present—was bullied or teased based on the character of Apu, it just really makes me sad. It was certainly not my intention; I wanted to spread laughter and joy with this character, and the idea that its brought pain and suffering in any way, that it was used to marginalize people, its upsetting. Genuinely.”

Earlier this month, the long-running comedy attempted to address the controversy—but ended up leaving some fans even more frustrated. In the episode, Marge read Lisa an old book that had been re-written to be less problematic—but Lisa was unmoved. When Marge asked if there was a solution to this problem, Lisa broke the fourth wall: “Its hard to say. Something that started decades ago, and was applauded and inoffensive, is now politically incorrect. What can you do?” she said, before turning to face her nightstand, where a framed photo of Apu sat. It was captioned with an old Simpsons catchphrase: “Dont have a cow!”

Azaria told Colbert that he was not involved in writing or filming the episode, and worked to distance himself from it on Tuesday. “If anybody came away from that segment feeling like they should lighten up or take a joke better or grow a thicker skin . . . thats certainly not the way I feel about it, and thats definitely not the message that I want to send them,” he said.

What does Azaria suggest, then? “Ive given this a lot of thought—really a lot of thought,” the actor said. “And as I say, my eyes have been opened. And I think the most important thing is we have to listen to South Asian people, Indian people in this country when they talk about what they feel and how they think about this character—what their American experience of it has been. As you know, in television terms, listening to voices means inclusion in the writers room.”

Azaria said he doesnt want to see South Asian writers working on The Simpsons “in a token way,” but instead hopes that they would be able to contribute and inform whatever new path Apu might forge. He also wants them to express thoughts on how the character gets voiced—even if that means stepping down from the role himself. “Im perfectly willing and happy to step aside or help transition it into something new,” Azaria said. “I really hope thats what this instance does. It just, it not only makes sense, but it just feels like the right thing to do to me.”

Last year, Kondabolu suggested a few remedies for Apu, including providing him “some upward mobility” or perhaps adding another character of South Asian descent to the show, someone whose socioeconomic background is different from Apus—perhaps, say, a billionaire like Mr. Burns. Another option? Give Apus kids a more prominent role on the series. “Have them represent us,” Kondabolu said. “Have writers who can write to that voice.” It sounds like Azaria has come around to that idea; now its up to the Fox comedy to follow.

Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Full ScreenPhotos:22 Movies and TV Shows That Will Save Us in 2018

Westworld (Season 2)

HBO is once again hoping youll ignore the big Game of Thrones-shaped hole in its schedule and turn your attention back to the sci-fi mind game that is Westworld. The Emmy-nominated series, starring Evan Rachel Wood and Thandie Newton, is ready to confound you once again in its second season. Until its spring 2018 premiere, take a trip back in time and revisit nine burning questions we still have about the finale.Photo: By John P. Johnson/HBO. Continue reading “Simpsons Star Hank Azaria Wants to Finally Solve the Problem with Apu”