Apu speaks again on The Simpsons after 9 years, voiced by Sunil Malhotra not Hank Azaria

Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, the Indian-born shopkeeper of The Simpsons, spoke again on Sunday, October 18, 2026, for the first time since 2017, with a new voice. Actor Sunil Malhotra has taken over the role from Hank Azaria, who voiced Apu for decades before stepping down in 2020 amid criticism that the character was a stereotype. Apu returned in "Treehouse of Horror Presents: The Revengening," the third episode of the show's 38th season, and his wife Manjula was also heard with a new voice, played by Janina Gavankar.

Apu has long been one of the best-known South Asian characters on American television, and also one of the most criticised. A 2017 documentary, The Problem With Apu, argued that the character, voiced by a white actor, reinforced stereotypes about South Asians. The film sparked a wide debate, and in 2020 Azaria said he would no longer voice the character. Since then Apu had not spoken on the show.

Bringing Apu back with a South Asian actor is the show's answer to that debate. Malhotra has been open that he was wary at first. He said that when his agent called about a Simpsons audition, the idea made his stomach sink, and that he spoke to the producers to make sure the character would be handled with more care. He later called the return "a reclamation" and said it was truly Apu's homecoming.

Apu's return will be watched closely as a test of whether a long-criticised character can be rebuilt rather than dropped.

For Indian audiences, Apu has long been a mixed symbol: a familiar face of a South Asian family on one of the world's most popular cartoons, and a reminder of how the community was once portrayed. How the show writes him and his family from now on, not just who voices him, will decide how that symbol is seen.

Short-term: Fans will watch the coming Halloween special and later episodes to see how much Apu and Manjula feature, and how their characters are written. The casting has already drawn wide attention online.

Long-term: If the show follows through on giving Apu's family a fuller role, it could become an example of how older animated series update characters criticised as stereotypes instead of quietly retiring them.

Who is affected: South Asian viewers in the US, India and around the world; actors of South Asian heritage seeking roles in animation; The Simpsons' writers and producers; and long-time fans of the show.

Questions and Answers