Aimee Walker
John Cleese, from Monty Python, has issued a mock apology in response to The Simpsons’ Hank Azaria who said he was ‘sorry‘ for voicing Apu.
Taking to Twitter, Cleese apologised for ‘making fun of white English people’ and said he’s ‘sorry for any distress caused’.
His post read: “Not wishing to be left behind by Hank Azaria, I would like to apologise on behalf of Monty Python for all the many sketches we did making fun of white English people.”
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Cleese then tweeted again on the subject of ‘wokeism’ and said: “Started out as a good idea – ‘Let’s be nice to people’ – and finished up as a humourless, censorious, literal-minded, posturing idiocy.”
The tweet divided fans, with one person responding: “And the french in ‘Holy Grail’ haha.”
Another added: “Okay, but what about the Belgians?”
However, not everybody agreed with him.
One person wrote: “John, I love you, but…you’re not this dumb. You can understand it’s about more than this.”
Caucasian voice actor Azaria made headlines earlier this week when he said he wanted to ‘apologise to every single Indian’ for his portrayal of Apu on The Simpsons.
The show actually addressed the controversy in an episode back in 2018.
In one scene, Lisa Simpson looks at the camera with a photo of Apu in the background. She then says: “Something that started decades ago and was applauded and inoffensive is now politically incorrect. What can you do?”
The episode received backlash on social media with one person tweeting: “The Simpsons’ completely toothless response to @harikondabolu’s ‘The Problem With Apu’ about the racist character Apu.”
The Simpsons has not yet replaced Azaria following his decision to step down. However, he has said he is ‘happy for someone else to voice the character’.
What is John Cleese famous for?
John Cleese is most known for his work across Monty Python’s Flying Circus and Fawlty Towers. He is an English comedian, actor, screenwriter, and producer.
In the mid-70s, Cleese and his wife at the time Connie Booth co-wrote Fawlty Towers where he played the character Basil Fawlty.
What films was John Cleese in?
The Harry Potter franchise, The Pink Panther 2, and Die Another Day are just some of the films John Cleese has starred in. He played Nearly Headless Nick in the first two Harry Potter films.
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