Apu Nahasapeemapetilon has spoken again on The Simpsons after nine years without dialogue. The character resurfaced on October 18, 2026 in “The Revengening,” an episode from season 38 aired by Fox in the United States, with Sunil Malhotra as his new original voice.
The Kwik-E-Mart shopkeeper had gone since October 2017 without uttering a line in the series, although he could still be seen occasionally among Springfield’s residents. His last spoken role had been in “The Serfsons.” The difference matters: the writers never erased him from the fictional universe, but stopped writing him lines while they decided what to do with one of his most recognizable supporting characters.
The controversy began to take on another dimension with The Problem with Apu, the 2017 documentary in which comedian Hari Kondabolu examined the stereotypes attached to the character and the experience of South Asian Americans. Hank Azaria, who had lent him his voice for decades, ended up resigning from the role. The show later announced, in 2020, that its characters of other ethnicities would be voiced in the original version by actors who were culturally closer to them.
Apu’s Return Also Brings Life Back to the Kwik-E-Mart
To bring him back, The Simpsons have chosen a Halloween-set episode with a plot that openly plays with the character’s long absence. Apu is introduced as an avenger whom Springfield has forgotten, a very typical way for the series to turn a behind-the-scenes decision into material for its jokes.
Malhotra’s addition was kept secret until the episode aired. Variety, which broke the casting exclusively, also confirmed that Janina Gavankar now voices Manjula, Apu’s wife. Executive producer Matt Selman hinted that both characters and the rest of the Nahasapeemapetilon family will have a bigger presence in upcoming stories.
The revival of the Kwik-E-Mart and Apu’s family surroundings points to something more ambitious than a nostalgic cameo. The character can once again have his own plots after almost a decade reduced to silent appearances. And the show now has a way to reclaim its humor without keeping intact the decisions that had sparked the criticisms.
Who Is Sunil Malhotra, the New Voice of Apu
Sunil Malhotra is an American actor of Indian descent who has worked on productions such as The Legend of Vox Machina and The Legend of Korra. According to his statement when the casting was made public, the proposal gave him initial doubts: he wanted to ensure that the character could evolve and that the creative team would address his portrayal seriously.
Malhotra spoke with the show’s producers before accepting. His addition marks the culmination of a Springfield voice-renewal process that has affected characters like Carl Carlson and Dr. Hibbert for representation reasons, though not all replacements respond to the same cause. Other changes, such as Milhouse’s new voice, came about due to the retirement of veteran performers.
When Will Apu’s Return Be Seen in Spain
The episode “The Revengening” premiered in the United States on October 18, within season 38. In Spain, that season is not yet available on streaming services and no concrete date has been announced to watch this episode.
Disney+ does have the series in its Spanish catalog and this very year released several special episodes of The Simpsons in our country. But those releases are independent of the schedule for season 38, so they do not allow predicting when the new voice of Apu will be heard here, nor who will handle its eventual Spanish dubbing.
For now, what is confirmed is that the return is not limited to a single line to close the controversy: the creative team has announced its intention to continue writing stories for Apu, Manjula and his family.
