“<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/the-simpsons">The Simpsons</a>” writer Al Jean celebrated that the popular animated show had once again made an accurate prediction now that Vice President Kamala Harris is running for president.
President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/joe-biden-withdraws-from-the-race-but-not-the-white-house-what-now">Joe Biden</a> announced on Sunday on X that he was withdrawing from the 2024 presidential race and endorsing Harris for president. Following the news, screenwriter for the show, Al Jean, reacted to the news, the <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/07/22/entertainment/simpsons-writer-reacts-to-kamala-harris-presidential-run-prediction/">New York Post</a> reported.
“@TheSimpsons ‘prediction’ I’m proud to be a part of,” he <a href="https://x.com/AlJean/status/1815107357669834777">wrote</a> on X. His post included a screenshot of an image from a “Simpsons” episode in 2000, showing Lisa Simpson being sworn in as the first female president. She was wearing the same purple jacket and string of pearls that Harris wore during Biden’s inauguration ceremony in 2021.
On Sunday, after Biden announced he would not seek reelection after all, many others on social media began sharing the same image on X, suggesting that the popular cartoon had predicted Harris would run for the Oval Office.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
In a season 11 episode of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheSimpsons?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheSimpsons</a>, Lisa Simpson becomes the first woman President and offhandedly mentions, “We inherited quite the budget crunch from President Trump&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/P6q5RQyXqV">https://t.co/P6q5RQyXqV</a> <a href="https://t.co/onysI14gE9">pic.twitter.com/onysI14gE9</a>
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) <a href="https://twitter.com/THR/status/1815421049510490428?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 22, 2024</a></blockquote>
“The Simpsons as Prophetic has become one of the most enduring mysteries of our times!” one person <a href="https://x.com/ZWardynski/status/1815126514733916601">wrote</a>.
“It’s unnerving how often these predictions have been spot on,” another person added.
The <a href="https://x.com/THR/status/1815421049510490428">Hollywood Reporter</a> noted that the episode not only appeared to predict Harris, but also that it happened after Lisa Simpson took office from “real estate mogul Donald Trump.”
“We inherited quite the budget crunch from President Trump,” Lisa Simpson said in the episode.
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Following the assassination attempt eight days ago against Trump, “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/simpsons-showrunner-hits-back-at-horrifying-suggestion-that-show-predicted-trump-assassination-attempt">The Simpsons</a>” showrunner Matt Selman hit back at the “horrifying” suggestion that the show somehow predicted the attempted assassination.
After a shooter opened fire on the former president during his rally in Pennsylvania, injuring Trump and killing one of his supporters, a meme began surfacing on social media showing a false image of Trump from the cartoon lying in a casket, with the caption, “First time I’ve seen a ‘Simpsons’ prediction fail.”
Speaking to <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2024/07/17/simpsons-showrunner-condemns-faux-fake-trump-death-assassination-prediction/">TMZ</a>, Selman slammed the image in the strongest terms, making it clear the writers and show would never have an episode about assassinating the former president and that a cartoon Trump never appeared in a casket.
“Anyone who thinks ‘The Simpsons’ would include such horrifying content on a family TV show doesn’t really watch the show or have any understanding of ‘The Simpsons’ at all,” Selman told the outlet.
Internet users falsely believing the meme came from the cartoon most likely stems from the reputation “The Simpsons” have earned after it’s been able to seemingly predict the future more than once.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/simpsons-showrunner-hits-back-at-horrifying-suggestion-that-show-predicted-trump-assassination-attempt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Simpsons’ Showrunner Hits Back At ‘Horrifying’ Suggestion That Show Predicted Trump Assassination Attempt</a>

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‘Simpsons’ Writer Celebrates Another Prediction Now That Kamala Harris Is Running

Celebrities

Donald Trump

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“The Simpsons” showrunner Matt Selman hit back at the “horrifying” suggestion that the popular show somehow predicted the attempted assassination of former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">President Donald Trump</a>.
After a shooter opened fire on the former president during his rally in Pennsylvania, injuring Trump and killing one of his supporters, a meme began surfacing on social media showing a false image of Trump from the cartoon lying in a casket, with the caption, &#8220;First time I&#8217;ve seen a &#8216;Simpsons&#8217; prediction fail.&#8221;
Speaking to <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2024/07/17/simpsons-showrunner-condemns-faux-fake-trump-death-assassination-prediction/">TMZ</a>, Selman slammed the image in the strongest terms, making it clear the writers and show would never have an episode about assassinating the former president and that a cartoon Trump never appeared in a casket.
&#8220;Anyone who thinks &#8216;The Simpsons&#8217; would include such horrifying content on a family TV show doesn’t really watch the show or have any understanding of &#8216;The Simpsons&#8217; at all,” Selman told the outlet.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The Simpsons creator shuts down rumors that the Fox series &#8216;predicted&#8217; the Donald Trump shooting <a href="https://t.co/nHPqmokEEG">https://t.co/nHPqmokEEG</a>
— Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) <a href="https://twitter.com/DailyMailCeleb/status/1813639537739886849?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 17, 2024</a></blockquote>
He also told <a href="https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/false-simpsons-prediction-resurfaces-after-trump-shooting-2024-07-14/">Reuters</a>, &#8220;The image of Donald Trump in a coffin never appeared on The Simpsons. It is doctored.”
“Sadly it is all too easy to create fake Simpsons &#8216;predictions&#8217; like these for the purpose of misleading people,” he added.
Next to some of the doctored images, social media users have noted their surprise and belief that the fake image was real, the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-13644173/simpsons-creator-denies-predict-donald-trump-shooting.html?ns_mchannel=rss&amp;ns_campaign=1490&amp;ito=social-twitter_dailymailceleb">Daily Mail</a> noted.
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“The Simpsons got some explaining to do,” one person wrote.
Another person added, “Ain&#8217;t no f***ing way. The Simpsons predicted this too?”
While a third wrote, “Simpsons ain&#8217;t never miss.”
Internet users falsely believing the meme came from the cartoon most likely stems from the reputation “The Simpsons” have earned after it&#8217;s been able to seemingly predict the future more than once.
The show previously predicted the creation of technology similar to the Apple Vision Pro, FaceTime, the COVID pandemic, and more recently, the Titanic submersible implosion.
<a href="https://ew.com/simpsons-predictions-that-came-true-8662708">Entertainment Weekly</a> recently did a piece titled, “20 Times ‘The Simpsons’ Predicted the Future” during the cartoon’s 35 seasons. The piece included what appeared in the cartoon episode and what ended up happening that same year or years later.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mummy-depiction-looks-a-lot-like-beloved-simpsons-character" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mummy Depiction Looks A Lot Like Beloved ‘Simpsons’ Character</a>

‘Simpsons’ Showrunner Hits Back At ‘Horrifying’ Suggestion That Show Predicted Trump Assassination Attempt

2024 Election

assassination

A mummy was recently unearthed in Egypt and a social media users think the depiction on the coffin looks a lot like the beloved Marge Simpson, a character from the popular animated series “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/the-simpsons" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Simpsons</a>.”
In 2023, archeologists working in Minya discovered several coffins in a cemetery dating back 3,500 years, <a href="https://www.thearchaeologist.org/blog/discovered-a-3500-year-old-cemetery-mummy-within-its-coffin">The Archaeologist</a> announced in a recent June press release. The coffins are believed to belong to priests and senior officials of the New Kingdom from 1550 BC to 1069 BC, the release noted.
Photos later surfaced from the dig with the markings on one of the coffins leaving people stunned, noting how the “unreal” drawings on the lid of the sarcophagus looked like the blue-haired mom on the long-running Fox cartoon, the <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/06/17/lifestyle/mummys-unearthed-coffin-features-unreal-depiction-of-beloved-simpsons-character/">New York Post</a> reported.
The images shared in the Post article showed a yellow colored woman sporting a large blue rectangle crown and a lime-green strapless dress.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Newly Unearthed Mummy Coffin Depicts a Figure That Looks Like Marge Simpson <a href="https://t.co/QPgMuCpugi">https://t.co/QPgMuCpugi</a>
— People (@people) <a href="https://twitter.com/people/status/1803138633186095475?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 18, 2024</a></blockquote>
While Marge doesn’t don a crown, she does have tall blue rectangle hair similar to that of the image of the figure on the coffin, yellow skin, and definitely wears a green strapless dress.
Along both sides of the sarcophagus drawing were smaller drawings of figures wearing the same lime-green dress while kneeling and appearing to pay homage to the larger figurine, along with hieroglyphics that include the name of the “deceased, titles, and religious text,” the release noted. 
Over on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/ArtefactPorn/comments/17f2czr/photo_of_an_upper_lid_coffin_found_in_newly/">Reddit</a>, users couldn’t help but notice the eerie comparison of the drawing of the larger figure to the “Simpsons” character.
“Marge?” one person commented.
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Another added, “Unreal.”
While a third wrote, “Egypt predicted Simpsons.”
One person even remarked that the creator of the long time series, “Matt Groening,” was “really” “a time traveler.”
It was an obvious reference to the joke that “The Simpsons” have been able to predict the future more than once. The show previously predicted the creation of technology similar to the Apple Vision Pro, FaceTime, the COVID pandemic, and more recently the Titanic submersible explosion.
<a href="https://ew.com/simpsons-predictions-that-came-true-8662708">Entertainment Weekly</a> recently did a piece titled, “20 Times ‘The Simpsons&#8217; Predicted the Future” during the cartoon’s 35 seasons. The piece included what appeared in the cartoon episode and what ended up happening that same year or years later.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-simpsons-implies-homer-is-done-strangling-bart-times-have-changed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘The Simpsons’ Implies Homer Is Done Strangling Bart: ‘Times Have Changed’</a>

Mummy Depiction Looks A Lot Like Beloved ‘Simpsons’ Character

Mummy Depiction Looks A Lot Like Beloved 'Simpsons' Character

Mummy

World

Writers on “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/the-simpsons" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Simpsons</a>” seem to have hinted that one classic joke is officially done.
In the third <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/television" target="_blank" rel="noopener">episode</a> of Season 35, “McMansion &amp; Wife,” Homer meets his new neighbor and tells him he doesn’t plan on choking Bart anymore. 
When the neighbor says Homer has a firm handshake, the Simpson family patriarch responds, &#8220;See, Marge, strangling the boy paid off,” but follows up by saying, &#8220;Just kidding, I don’t do that anymore. Times have changed.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The Simpsons seemingly confirm that they have retired their long-running gag of Homer strangling Bart in the latest episode:
“See, Marge, strangling the boy paid off. Just kidding, I don’t do that anymore. Times have changed.” <a href="https://t.co/EHQWUdOHgZ">https://t.co/EHQWUdOHgZ</a>
&mdash; Pop Base (@PopBase) <a href="https://twitter.com/PopBase/status/1721665216578994321?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Fans understood this as creators of the long-running <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/animation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">animated show</a> laying this gag to rest. The strangling had previously been addressed in Season 22 when Homer goes to therapy and learns of the harm he’s been doing to Bart.
Homer has choked Bart on some new episodes since then, per <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2023/11/06/homer-wont-strangle-bart-simpsons-times-have-changed/">TMZ</a>, but last did it during Season 31, which aired from 2019-20. If the latest episode is factual, then Homer may be done with that form of discipline.
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Fans were divided on the update, with some saying it was a welcome change or didn’t matter and others arguing that the bit was always “<a href="https://twitter.com/LordExtinction1/status/1721345048829149554" target="_blank" rel="noopener">funny and harmless</a>.”
This isn’t the first change “The Simpsons” made to appeal to modern audiences. Actor Hank Azaria apologized for voicing the Indian character Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hank-azaria-apologizes-to-every-indian-for-voicing-apu-the-character-is-practically-a-slur" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. 
“I was speaking at my son’s school, I was talking to the Indian kids there because I wanted to get their input,” Azaria said. “A 17-year-old … he’s never even seen ‘The Simpsons’ but knows what Apu means. It’s practically a slur at this point. All he knows is that is how his people are thought of and represented to many people in this country.”
“I really do apologize,” the actor continued. “It’s important. I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do.”
In February 2021, it was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-simpsons-recasts-voice-of-black-doctor-after-31-years-played-by-white-actor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that the long-running character Dr. Hibbert, who is black, would be recast with Kevin Michael Richardson after decades of being voiced by the white voice actor Harry Shearer.

‘The Simpsons’ Implies Homer Is Done Strangling Bart: ‘Times Have Changed’

'The Simpsons' Implies Homer Is Done Strangling Bart: 'Times Have Changed'

Animation

Television

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/disney">Disney</a>, ever eager to avoid any confrontation with the Chinese Communist government, cut an episode of The Simpsons from Disney Plus streaming platform in Hong Kong that referenced “forced labor camps” in China.
The episode, titled “One Angry Lisa,” aired in October 2022 and showed the instructor of Marge Simpson’s virtual bike class state, “Behold the wonders of China. Bitcoin mines, forced labor camps where children make smartphones.” Another episode of the show that broadcast in 2005 mentioned the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and the Chinese government’s efforts to suppress knowledge of it; it was cut in 2021.
Cutting the episode had “more to do with the company’s ties, current and future, in mainland China,” Kenny Ng, associate professor at the Academy of Film at Hong Kong Baptist University, said, adding, “It could be strategic to eliminate any China-offending episodes.”
Yet the Hong Kong government, responding to the situation, stated that its recent film censorship regime, enacted in 2021 to prevent films from posing a risk to national security, “does not apply to streaming services,” <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/05d7df58-fc9a-4278-a0d7-3af5e34bc0c2">Financial Times </a>reported.
Hong Kong, formerly a British colony, was given to China in 1997.
In October 2019, speaking at the WSJ Tech Live conference on Tuesday, Disney CEO Bob Iger admitted that Disney would stay silent regarding the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests.
&#8220;What we learned in the last week — we’ve learned how complicated this is,&#8221; Iger said, as reported by <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-23/disney-s-iger-says-he-won-t-take-position-on-hong-kong-protests">Bloomberg</a>. &#8220;The biggest learning from that is that caution is imperative. To take a position that could harm our company in some form would be a big mistake. I just don’t believe it’s something we should engage in in a public manner.&#8221;
Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) blasted Iger, snapping, “‘Sell your soul to save your profits’ is going to be a helluva plot line for ‘Frozen 2.’ There are about a million Uyghurs in Chinese communist prisons who aren’t going to be visiting the Magic Kingdom anytime soon.”
Disney Company opened its $5.5 billion Shanghai Disney Resort in 2016. “Our dream comes true,” Iger <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/17/business/international/disney-shanghai-opens.html">boasted</a> in Mandarin.
Liu Yifei, the star of Disney’s live-action “Mulan,” triggered an <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/04/entertainment/mulan-boycott-hong-kong-trnd/index.html">anti-Mulan boycott </a> after she expressed support for the Hong Kong police force putting down the pro-democracy protests, saying on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, “I support the Hong Kong police. You can all attack me now. What a shame for Hong Kong.”

US-ENTERTAINMENT-TELEVISION-EMMYS-SHOW

Disney Cuts ‘Simpsons’ Episode That Mentions Forced Labor Camps From Chinese Platform

Disney Cuts Episode Of 'The Simpsons' That Mentions Forced Labor Camps From Chinese Platform

China

Disney

Disney has reportedly removed an episode of “The Simpsons” from its streaming platform in Hong Kong in a move some are viewing as an effort to appease China.
The episode in question, “Goo Goo Gai Pan,” first aired in 2005 and shows the iconic family from Springfield visiting China, including a location called “Tien An Men Square.” There, a sign informs them, “On this site, in 1989, nothing happened.&#8221;
As <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/simpsons-china-censorship-1235053711/">The Hollywood Reporter</a> noted, “It appears the episode has suffered precisely the kind of the censorship it was written to ridicule.”
The episode’s disappearance follows on the heels of China&#8217;s new amendment to its film censorship law that allows Beijing to censor entertainment it deems a threat to national security. According to <a href="https://variety.com/2021/global/asia/disney-plus-simpsons-hong-kong-1235120971/">Variety</a>, &#8220;Goo Goo Gai Pan&#8221; is still available on the platform in other parts of Asia.
A professor at the Academy of Film at Hong Kong Baptist University who specializes in censorship told <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/5104cac1-28f8-43cd-b99e-ac78bcbbfb67">The Financial Times</a> he believes the episode’s omission is “largely to do with the business interest of US streaming companies.”
“It is in their best interest not to offend the Chinese government, or simply create complications,” professor Kenny Ng said, adding, “they have no strong motivation to put on offending materials at this sensitive moment.”
Ng also said he fears other streaming giants could follow Disney’s lead as “a new ground for negotiations between freedom of expression and censorship” emerges.
Numerous outlets, including The Daily Wire, have reached out to the Walt Disney Company for information about how and why the episode was removed, but so far Disney press representatives have not responded to any media requests.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/communist-china-appears-to-block-online-tiananmen-square-museum-follows-crackdown-on-other-exhibits">reported</a>, the Chinese Communist Party has been taking strong steps in recent months to suppress the memory of the Tiananmen Square massacre. On that site, on June 4, 1989, the People’s Liberation Army opened fire on peaceful Tiananmen activists demonstrating for democracy, killing hundreds, possibly thousands (estimates vary).
For the last two years, Beijing has banned candlelight vigils in Hong Kong commemorating the deaths of the Tiananmen victims. They’ve also censored social media groups dedicated to honoring them. Then, in June, state authorities shuttered a museum dedicated to Tiananmen, seized its assets, and arrested some of the proprietors.
China has been exercising greater control over Hong Kong since passing a new national security law in 2020, which The Daily Wire described as sweeping:
<blockquote>Enacted during secret sessions that bypassed Hong Kong’s legislature, it gives police the power to imprison dissenters without trial, shut down newspapers, and investigate cultural institutions without regard to local Hong Kong authorities. As <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/07/hong-kong-national-security-law-10-things-you-need-to-know/">Amnesty International</a> has said, based on the law’s tenets, “‘Endangering national security’ can mean virtually anything,” including wearing clothing with certain pro-freedom slogans.</blockquote>

Disney Removes Simpsons Episode In Hong Kong In Latest Move To Appease China

Communist China

Hong Kong

According to <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2021/04/14/hank-azaria-invited-meet-hindu-american-foundation-apu-guilt/">TMZ</a>, Shereen Bhalla, a rep for the Hindu American Foundation, has invited actor Hank Azaria for a sit-down discussion about the alleged harm his “Simpsons” character Apu has inflicted upon the world.
&#8220;Hank doesn&#8217;t have to torment himself for his work on &#8216;The Simpsons,&#8217; or at least he doesn&#8217;t have to do it alone. Bhalla says she and the staff at HAF would love to have a sit-down with him,&#8221; reported TMZ. &#8220;She tells us coming to the table with them would help Hank do a lot of the learning he seems very open to at this point. Shereen says they can expose him to Indian people&#8217;s lived experiences, and have a dialogue about his lingering guilt.&#8221;
&#8220;If Hank&#8217;s concerned about &#8216;cancel culture&#8217; &#8230; HAF does not want to see that happen to the veteran actor,&#8221; TMZ continued. &#8220;We&#8217;re told the group doesn&#8217;t feel Hank needs to be excommunicated, and believes he&#8217;s genuinely sorry and willing to educate himself &#8230; which HAF would love to help him do. As for how to proceed, there are a few options. For one, HAF is offering Hank a third-party facilitated dialogue with Indians across the nation, on or off the record &#8230; his choice. Also, HAF has a podcast called &#8216;That&#8217;s So Hindu&#8217; and would be more than happy to have him as a guest.&#8221;
Speaking on the “Armchair Expert” podcast with host Dax Shepard earlier this week, Azaria said he finally stepped away from the role of Apu after attending several seminars and learning from other people about how the character hurt them.
“I was speaking at my son’s school, I was talking to the Indian kids there because I wanted to get their input,” Azaria said, as reported by <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/simpsons-actor-hank-azaria-feels-he-needs-apologize-to-every-indian-for-apu">The Hollywood Reporter</a>. “A 17-year-old … he’s never even seen The Simpsons but knows what Apu means. It’s practically a slur at this point. All he knows is that is how his people are thought of and represented to many people in this country.” Azaria told the boy that he apologized and that he promised to convey to Hollywood that how they portray certain people matters in the real world.
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“I really do apologize,” Azaria said. “It’s important. I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do.”</section>
Apu was never presented as a dumb Indian immigrant who runs the Kwik-E-Mart. In fact, multiple episodes spent time developing his complexity as a character throughout the show’s near three-decade run. Contrary to perception, he holds a Ph.D. in computer science, graduated from the top of his class at “Caltech” (Calcutta Technical Institute), and only runs the Kwik-E-Mart because of the joy it brings him to spend time with friends and customers.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/john-cleese-mocks-hank-azarias-apology-for-playing-apu">John Cleese Mocks Hank Azaria’s Apology For Playing Apu</a>
</section>

FYC Event For IFC’s “Brockmire” And “Documentary Now!” – Inside

Hindu American Group Invites Hank Azaria To Talk About ‘The Simpsons’ Character Apu

Hinduism

Never one to embrace political correctness or woke culture, &#8220;Monty Python&#8221; legend John Cleese mocked actor Hank Azaria for apologizing to every Indian American for voicing the beloved character Apu on &#8220;The Simpsons.&#8221;
In a tweet on Tuesday, Cleese said that he now apologizes for ever having mocked English-speaking people in his past sketches.
&#8220;Not wishing to be left behind by Hank Azaria, I would like to apologise on behalf on Monty Python for all the many sketches we did making fun of white English people[.] We&#8217;re sorry for any distress we may have caused,&#8221; he tweeted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Not wishing to be left behind by Hank Azaria, I would like to apologise on behalf on Monty Python for all the many sketches we did making fun of white English people
We&#39;re sorry for any distress we may have caused
&mdash; John Cleese (@JohnCleese) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnCleese/status/1382035246875516928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Speaking on the “Armchair Expert” podcast with host Dax Shepard earlier this week, Azaria said he finally stepped away from the role of Apu after attending several seminars and learning from other people about how the character hurt them.
“I was speaking at my son’s school, I was talking to the Indian kids there because I wanted to get their input,” Azaria said, as reported by <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/simpsons-actor-hank-azaria-feels-he-needs-apologize-to-every-indian-for-apu">The Hollywood Reporter</a>. “A 17-year-old … he’s never even seen The Simpsons but knows what Apu means. It’s practically a slur at this point. All he knows is that is how his people are thought of and represented to many people in this country.”
Azaria told the boy that he apologized and that he promised to convey to Hollywood that how they portray certain people matters in the real world.
“I really do apologize,” Azaria said. “It’s important. I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do.”
In recent years, some on the Left have attacked “The Simpsons” character Apu, alleging he perpetuated Indian stereotypes. Spearheading the attack was documentary filmmaker Hari Kondabolu, who created a full-length film about Apu’s problematic nature. Initially, “The Simpsons” creator Matt Groening dismissed his critics in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29216/simpsons-responds-leftist-claims-racism-and-emily-zanotti">an</a><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29216/simpsons-responds-leftist-claims-racism-and-emily-zanotti"> episode</a> where the character Lisa told the critics to take their outrage elsewhere; however, as time went on, the show eventually dropped the beloved character months after Hank Azaria issued his first apology.
John Cleese has been an outward opponent of cancel culture and its attacks against free speech. Speaking with <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-people-john-cleese/cancel-culture-takes-the-fun-out-of-life-says-comedian-john-cleese-idUSKCN24M2QV">Reuters </a>this past July, Cleese said that cancel culture, often fueled by political correctness, “misunderstands the main purposes of life, which is to have fun.”
“Everything humorous is critical. If you have someone who is perfectly kind and intelligent and flexible and who always behaves appropriately, they’re not funny. Funniness is about people who don’t do that, like Trump,” he said.
Cleese added that political correctness creates a problem for comedians because they “have to set the bar according to what we are told by the most touchy, most emotionally unstable and fragile, and least stoic people in the country.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hank-azaria-apologizes-to-every-indian-for-voicing-apu-the-character-is-practically-a-slur">Hank Azaria Apologizes To Every Indian For Voicing Apu: The Character ‘Is Practically A Slur’</a>

BOSNIA-ARTS-FILM-FESTIVAL-CLEESE

John Cleese Mocks Hank Azaria’s Apology For Playing Apu

Hollywood

John Cleese

Hank Azaria once again apologized for being the man behind &#8220;The Simpsons&#8221; character Apu, despite spending decades voicing the character.
Speaking on the &#8220;Armchair Expert&#8221; podcast with host Dax Shepard, Azaria said he finally stepped away from the role after attending several seminars and learning from other people about how the character hurt them.
&#8220;I was speaking at my son&#8217;s school, I was talking to the Indian kids there because I wanted to get their input,&#8221; Azaria said, as reported by <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/simpsons-actor-hank-azaria-feels-he-needs-apologize-to-every-indian-for-apu">The Hollywood Reporter</a>. &#8220;A 17-year-old &#8230; he&#8217;s never even seen The Simpsons but knows what Apu means. It&#8217;s practically a slur at this point. All he knows is that is how his people are thought of and represented to many people in this country.&#8221;
Azaria told the boy that he apologized and that he promised to convey to Hollywood that how they portray certain people matters in the real world.
&#8220;I really do apologize,&#8221; Azaria said. &#8220;It&#8217;s important. I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize. And sometimes I do.&#8221;
As The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-simpsons-to-stop-casting-white-voice-actors-for-non-white-characters">reported</a> last year, &#8220;The Simpsons&#8221; announced that it would no longer allow white actors to voice non-white characters. Azaria said he strongly supports this move.
It should be noted that Apu was never presented as a dumb Indian immigrant who runs the Kwik-E-Mart. In fact, multiple episodes spent time developing his complexity as a character throughout the show’s near three-decade run. Contrary to his perception, he holds a Ph.D. in computer science, graduated from the top of his class at “Caltech” (Calcutta Technical Institute), and only runs the Kwik-E-Mart because of the joy it brings him to spend time with friends and customers.
In recent years, social justice warriors have attacked “The Simpsons” character Apu, alleging he perpetuated Indian stereotypes. Spearheading the attack was documentary filmmaker Hari Kondabolu, who created a full-length film about Apu&#8217;s problematic nature. Initially, “The Simpsons” creator Matt Groening dismissed his critics in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29216/simpsons-responds-leftist-claims-racism-and-emily-zanotti">an</a><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29216/simpsons-responds-leftist-claims-racism-and-emily-zanotti"> episode</a> where the character Lisa told the critics to take their outrage elsewhere; however, as time went on, the show eventually dropped the beloved character months after Hank Azaria issued his first apology.
&#8220;I’ve given this a lot of thought, really a lot of thought. 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– about this character, and what their American experience of it has been,&#8221; he told Stephen Colbert.
&#8220;And as you know, in television terms, listening to voices means inclusion in the writers’ room,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I really want to see Indian, South Asian writer, writers in the room, not in a token way, but genuinely informing whatever new direction this character may take, including how it is voiced or not voiced. You know, I’m perfectly willing and happy to step aside or help transition it into something new. I really hope that’s what The Simpsons does. And it not only makes sense, but it just feels like the right thing to do to me.&#8221;

Celebrity Sightings in New York City – April 2, 2019

Hank Azaria Apologizes To Every Indian For Voicing Apu: The Character ‘Is Practically A Slur’

&#8220;The Simpsons,&#8221; the long-running, irreverent animated TV show, will recast a voice actor who has played a black doctor for 31 years.
White actor Harry Shearer has played the character of Dr. Hibbert on the show, but next week he will be voiced by black actor Kevin Michael Richardson, who voices characters in &#8220;Family Guy&#8221; and &#8220;American Dad!&#8221;
&#8220;Last night’s episode &#8216;DiaryQueen&#8217; featured Harry Shearer as the voice of Dr. Hibbert for the last time,&#8221; 20th Television said in a statement provided to The Wrap on Monday. &#8220;Next Sunday’s episode &#8216;Wad Goals&#8217; will have Kevin Michael Richardson voicing Dr. Hibbert — and from there on out he will voice the character.&#8221;
Shearer has voiced Hibbert since the show’s second season in 1990.
The change came after Fox said last summer that “The Simpsons” will do away with actors playing other races, the longest-running in TV history.
“Moving forward, ‘The Simpsons’ will no longer have white actors voice nonwhite characters,” the network said in a June statement at the time, shortly after Black Lives Matter riots exploded following the death of George Floyd while in police custody.
The statement came after “Family Guy” star Mike Henry, who is white, announced he would no longer voice black character Cleveland Brown, one of the most popular on the show.
Earlier this year, Hank Azaria, who plays bartender Moe Szyslak and a slew of other characters on the show, announced he would stop voicing the Indian convenience-store proprietor Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.
“My eyes have been opened,” Azaria said in a January interview. “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, how they think about this character, and what their American experience of it [is].”
“What they’re going to do with the character is their call, it’s up to them, they haven’t sorted that out yet,” Azaria said of “The Simpsons” team. “All we agreed on is that I won’t do the voice anymore. We all had made the decision together, we all feel it was the right thing and good about it,” he added.
It&#8217;s not the first time a character has been recast because of race. Last June, actress Kristen Bell announced she would no longer be the voice of Molly, a mixed-race character on Apple TV+&#8217;s animated musical comedy series Central Park.
&#8220;Casting a mixed race character with a white actress undermines the specificity of the mixed race and Black American experience,&#8221; she wrote on Twitter at the time. &#8220;This is a time to acknowledge our acts of complicity. Here is one of mine. Playing the character of Molly on Central Park shows a lack of awareness of my pervasive privilege.&#8221;
Netflix’s animated comedy Big Mouth also recast Jenny Slate in the role Missy, a biracial girl, replaced with a black actress.

2019 Tribeca Film Festival – Anniversary Film: This Is Spinal Tap – 35 years

‘The Simpsons’ Recasts Voice Of Black Doctor After 31 Years Played By White Actor

&#8220;The Simpsons,&#8221; America’s longest-running animated television show, will stop allowing white actors to voice non-white characters in future episodes, the show’s producers revealed in a brief statement late Friday evening.
&#8220;Moving forward, The Simpsons will no longer have White actors voice non-White characters,&#8221; the show said in the statement, reports <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/family-guy-actor-stop-voicing-black-character-1300742?utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=THR%20Breaking%20News_now_2020-06-26%2015:29:18_rporter&amp;utm_term=hollywoodreporter_breakingnews">The Hollywood Reporter</a>.
Hank Azaria, a voice actor who has played multiple roles on “The Simpsons,” including bartender Moe Szyslack and Hispanic TV actor Bumblebee Man, announced earlier this year that he would no longer serve as the voice actor for Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, the show’s convenience store clerk.
Apu’s role in &#8220;The Simpsons&#8221; was subject to growing criticism back in 2017 after the documentary “The Problem with Apu” was released. Hari Kondabolu, who starred in the documentary, told <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2017/11/the-simpsons-problem-with-apu-hari-kondabolu-documentary">Vanity Fair</a> back in 2017 that the show’s depiction of Apu was “based on a white person’s perception of an Indian immigrant,” and suffers from a “fundamental flaw, a stereotype.”
“It’s the same jokes: India has over a billion people, something about curry, gods with many arms and elephants’ heads, arranged marriage,” he said.
According to <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/salvadorhernandez/the-simpsons-white-actors-characters-of-color">Buzzfeed News</a>, the show’s new casting decision was announced shortly after two other prominent actors on other shows revealed they would no longer play non-white roles. One such actor, Mike Henry, tweeted earlier in the day that he would no longer play the character of Cleveland Brown, who is African American, in the show “Family Guy.”
“It’s been an honor to play Cleveland on Family Guy for 20 years,” Henry tweeted on Friday afternoon. “I love this character, but persons of color should play characters of color. Therefore, I will be stepping down from the role.”
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It’s been an honor to play Cleveland on Family Guy for 20 years. I love this character, but persons of color should play characters of color. Therefore, I will be stepping down from the role. <a href="https://t.co/FmKasWITKT">pic.twitter.com/FmKasWITKT</a>
— Mike Henry (@mikehenrybro) <a href="https://twitter.com/mikehenrybro/status/1276631712949317639?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 26, 2020</a></blockquote>
As <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/citing-white-privilege-jenny-slate-gives-up-voiceover-role-of-mixed-animated-character-after-discussion-with-shows-black-collaborators">The Daily Wire</a> previously reported, actress Jenny Slate announced Wednesday that she would no longer play the role of “Missy” on the Netflix animated series “Big Mouth,” on account that the character is biracial and Slate does not share the same racial background as the character.
“At the start of the show, I reasoned with myself that it was permissible for me to play ‘Missy’ because her mom is Jewish and White — as am I,” Slate said. “But ‘Missy’ is also Black, and Black characters on an animated show should be played by Black people.”
Slate also claimed that her original justification for playing the character — reasoning which she now says is flawed — served as an “example of my white privilege and unjust allowances made within a system of societal white supremacy.” 

The co-creators of the show have also apologized for casting a white actor in the role.
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

The Simpsons To Stop Casting White Voice Actors For Non-White Characters

Race

On Tuesday night, after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s histrionic display in which she ripped up a copy of President Trump’s State of the Union speech live on television for all to see, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has never been known to mince words, issued one tweet that targeted Pelosi with one memorable image; the character of Lisa Simpson from the iconic show “The Simpsons,” about to rip up a piece of paper and sobbing.
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<a href="https://t.co/AaopLt8f9f">pic.twitter.com/AaopLt8f9f</a>
&mdash; Mike Pompeo (@mikepompeo) <a href="https://twitter.com/mikepompeo/status/1224910919697944576?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://www.newsweek.com/simpsons-writer-mike-pompeo-nancy-pelosi-lisa-simpson-1485759">Newsweek</a> described the episode in which the image of Lisa Simpson appears, 1991’s &#8220;Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington,” like this:
<blockquote>Lisa enters an essay-writing contest about America and wins a trip for the family to Washington, D.C., to attend the finals of the competition. There, Lisa witnesses a congressman accepting a bribe in the House of Representatives and, disheartened by this distinctly undemocratic act, changes her final essay to scold the government. The congressman is arrested as a result of Lisa&#8217;s essay.</blockquote>
Yeardley Smith, the actress who is the voice of Lisa Simpson, expressed her outrage by tweeting politely, “I might jus add f*** you @MikePompeo for co-opting my character to troll @Speaker Pelosi. Be a leader and fight you (sic) own fight. Oh, wait I forgot, you’re a follower.”
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That’s pretty good! I might just add f*ck you <a href="https://twitter.com/mikepompeo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mikepompeo</a> for co-opting my character to troll <a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SpeakerPelosi</a> . Be a leader and fight you own fight! Oh, wait I forgot, you’re a follower. <a href="https://t.co/EzCtEZmKzJ">https://t.co/EzCtEZmKzJ</a>
&mdash; Yeardley Smith (@YeardleySmith) <a href="https://twitter.com/YeardleySmith/status/1225068509899571200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Former Simpsons writer and showrunner Bill Oakley tweeted his displeasure with Pompeo using the image, writing, &#8220;Mr. Secretary of State please do not ever ever ever use Simpsons material in your twitter or watch the show or refer to it in any way.” He added, “To be clear this episode aired before @Joshstrangehill and I even worked on the show and was written by the genius George Meyer and I say this to Mr. Pompeo as a FAN of this episode, not someone who worked on it. If he starts using Steamed Hams, then this will become personal.”
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1224923864452354048
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/1224926274977533958
Allie Goertz,  co-host of the Simpsons podcast Round Springfield, echoed on Twitter, “&#8221;It’s amazing that even horrible people love The Simpsons. But to be clear, Lisa would hate Mike Pompeo more than the fictional politicians she’s crying over in this episode.&#8221;
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It’s amazing that even horrible people love The Simpsons. 
But to be clear, Lisa would hate Mike Pompeo more than the fictional politicians she’s crying over in this episode. <a href="https://t.co/seCvTu6k8L">https://t.co/seCvTu6k8L</a>
&mdash; Allie Goertz (@AllieGoertz) <a href="https://twitter.com/AllieGoertz/status/1224937480010383361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Last October, Pelosi <a href="https://www.kanw.com/post/secretary-state-mike-pompeo-confirms-he-was-phone-trumps-call-zelenskiy">appeared</a> with House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff, stating, &#8220;We see the actions of this president being an assault on the Constitution.” Schiff added, &#8220;We are deeply concerned about Secretary Pompeo&#8217;s effort now to potentially interfere with witnesses &#8230; many of whom are mentioned in the whistleblower complaint.”
In response, President Trump issued a tweet saying, “Adam Schiff should only be so lucky to have the brains, honor and strength of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. For a lowlife like Schiff, who completely fabricated my words and read them to Congress as though they were said by me, to demean a First in Class at West Point, is SAD!”
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Adam Schiff should only be so lucky to have the brains, honor and strength of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. For a lowlife like Schiff, who completely fabricated my words and read them to Congress as though they were said by me, to demean a First in Class at West Point, is SAD!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1179420554601910272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 2, 2019</a></blockquote>
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In July 2017, Simpson creator Matt Groening appeared on a Comic-Con panel, where he led hundreds of people chanting &#8220;Lock him up&#8221; in reference to President Trump. As <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/matt-groening-anti-trump-cheer_n_59740be0e4b00e4363dfefb6">Huffington Post</a> reported. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2004/oct/04/media.mediaguardian1">The Guardian</a> reported in 2004:
<blockquote>Groening is from the &#8220;liberal side&#8221; of the political spectrum. As, it seems, are most of the cast and crew. &#8220;We&#8217;re all going to vote for the same presidential candidate. But we take shots at both sides. We really haven&#8217;t slammed George Bush as much as we have slammed Clinton. Maybe we feel sort of guilty,&#8221; says Carolyn Omine, the only female writer on the show.</blockquote>

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