Apu To Be Cut From ‘The Simpsons’ After 31 Years

After 31 years of appearing on The Simpsons, Indian shopkeeper Apu will be cut from the show.

The character, voiced by white actor Hank Azaria, was the subject of heated debate after being branded a racist caricature in the documentary, The Problem with Apu.

The documentary claims the character is tainted with “a little bit of the poison of racism.”

The documentary’s presented, comedian Hari Kondabolu said, “Apu reflected how America viewed us: servile, devious, goofy.”

While Kondabolu didn’t call for Apu to be killed off, instead urging writers to “keep him and complicate” him, sources close to the show are saying that he’ll now be written out of the show.

Adi Shankar, the film producer of The Grey, has claimed “multiple sources” have said the shopkeeper’s fate is already determined.

“They’re going to drop the Apu character altogether,” he told entertainment news site IndieWire.

“They aren’t going to make a big deal out of it, or anything like that, but they’ll drop him altogether just to avoid the controversy.” The move would be a huge one for America’s longest-running sitcom.

Shankar wouldn’t elaborate any further on his IndieWire interview, stating that he didn’t want to give away any of his sources. A spokesperson for Fox released a statement from “Simpsons” executive producer Al Jean told NBC News stating, “Apu appeared in the 10/14/18 episode ‘My Way or the Highway to Heaven.'”

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Apu has been a fixture since 1990 and Azaria won a 1998 Emmy Award for his portrayal.