With the producers fearing the racial connotations of a black actor in such a part, Azaria inherited the full role. [12] He originally intended to work predominantly as a theatrical actor, and he and Platt set up a company called Big Theatre, although Harold Pinter's The Dumb Waiter was the only show they ever performed. [4] Originally, it was thought that Apu being Indian was too offensive and stereotyped, but after Azaria's reading of the line "Hello, Mr. Homer", which the show's producers thought was hilarious, the character stayed. [7] He played Joe in an episode of the sitcom Family Ties in 1988 in which he had one line, and the following year he played Steve Stevenson in an episode of Growing Pains. Hank Azaria has had quite the career over the last 30-plus years. But then, much to my surprise, he would still keep having me back every week. ", "Stiller, Gervais & Azaria's Boys' Night", "I love this Web series: Hank Azaria's 'Fatherhood, "Alan Tudyk replaces Hank Azaria in 'Spamalot", "Azaria and Simpson to Star in Sorkin's Farnsworth Invention on Broadway", "Hank Azaria talks about the legend of Jim Brockmire", "Rich Eisen Podcast: Michael Lombardi AFC South preview and Jim Brockmire", "Hank Azaria sues over a character voice", "Hank Azaria Wins Lawsuit Over Funny Baseball Announcer Character", "Hank Azaria & Girlfriend Expecting First Child", "Hank Azaria, Voice of Simpsons and Movie Star Next Door, Steals His Scenes in Lovelace", "Voice of Homer Simpson, Dan Castellaneta, sells Palisades home", "Bye, Everybody! In 2003, he appeared as Bernard in a run of David Mamet's play Sexual Perversity in Chicago, along with Matthew Perry and Minnie Driver, in London's West End. This return culminates in David proposing to Phoebe; she rejects him, and David leaves the show for good. Trained as a stage actor, Hank Azaria performed in several serious plays before moving to Los Angeles to try his hand at stand-up comedy. Azaria's mother use to be a publicist for Columbia Pictures, promoting films in Latin American countries. [111], Azaria is the godfather of Oliver Platt's son, George. His grandiose, yet slightly fey bad guy is equally funny when he's chewing out minions as he is when deliberating if Oscar the Grouch and Darth Vader are evil enough to join his team. [25] The strike was resolved a month later,[26] with Azaria's pay increasing to something between $250,000[27] and $360,000 per episode. [107] They previously lived in a four-bedroom house in Pacific Palisades, which Azaria bought from his Simpsons co-star Dan Castellaneta in 2011. [78][79][80] For example, Sandie Chen of The Washington Post said "Azaria has been honing his over-the-top Spanish accent since The Birdcage, so anything he says grabs some laughs",[81] while Emma Simmonds of Time Out called him an "unflappable presence, voicing two characters with style". [4] He felt that, initially, "[the producers] didn't seem too pleased with what I had done...[Simon] was very exacting...[and] was kind of impatiently directing me on the ABCs of comedy. [117] Azaria co-founded the educational support charity, "Determined to Succeed". After advice from a drag queen, he chose the effeminate voice. [54] Azaria described the latter as the "best work [he has] done. [106][107] They have a son named Hal (born 2009). The go-to source for comic book and superhero movie fans. [92] In late 2007 he starred in Aaron Sorkin's The Farnsworth Invention, playing RCA head David Sarnoff. [34] He played photographer Victor "Animal" Palotti in Godzilla (1998). [17] His co-star in The Simpsons, Nancy Cartwright, wrote that: "The thing about Hank that I most remember is that he started out so unassuming and then, little by little, his abilities were revealed and his contributions to the show escalated. On 25-4-1964 Hank Azaria was born in Queens, New York. Its five-month shoot was the longest of his career to date, but he considered it a good chance to boost his profile. The producers wanted an "old, failed, Shakespearean actor" voice, but Azaria felt this would lack energy and wanted something more Eastern European. [22], Azaria's work on the show has won him four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance, in 1998, 2001, 2003 and 2015. [74], Azaria performed a number of voice roles in addition to The Simpsons, although he noted in 2005: "I started doing other voiceovers for cartoons for a couple of years, but I didn't really love it. [11] At the time he was performing the role of a drug dealer in a play, utilizing a voice based on actor Al Pacino's performance in the film Dog Day Afternoon. [5], Azaria became famous for his voice work in the ongoing animated television series The Simpsons. [4][7][14][15], Azaria did not expect to hear from the show again, but they continued to call him back, first to perform the voice of Chief Wiggum and then Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. ",[77] and Abbie Hoffman and Allen Ginsberg in Chicago 10 (2007). Azaria was confused by his casting in Uprising and frequently asked the film's producer and director Jon Avnet why he was selected. Hank Azaria based Comic Book Guy’s voice on a guy who lived in the dorm next to his at college. [7][51] Other film roles included Hector Gorgonzolas in America's Sweethearts (2001), Claude in Along Came Polly (2004), and the young Patches O'Houlihan in DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story (2004), the latter two with Ben Stiller. He never explained it satisfactorily to me; I don't understand why. Search clues. He counts Grimes as the hardest, most emotional performance he has ever had to give in the history of The Simpsons. [45] Despite Azaria mounting a campaign on Twitter to save it,[46] the series was canceled after four episodes due to low ratings. Hank Azaria was born on April 25, 1964 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA as Henry Albert Azaria. The character is a spot-on lampoon of every "comic book guy" in America. There have been rumors about what The Simpsons would do about Apu, but none were substantiated. After 30 years as a controversial Indian-American character on "The Simpsons," Hank Azaria has announced he will no longer voice the thickly accented Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. '"[11] His next dramatic part was in the television film Uprising in 2001. [99], Azaria's friends refer to him as "the freakish mimic" due to his ability to copy almost anyone's voice, instantly after he has heard it. [7] He attended Camp Towanda in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, and now visits annually as a judge for the camp's Olympics. [52], Azaria played composer Marc Blitzstein in Tim Robbins' film Cradle Will Rock in 1999. While Hank Azaria, who voices the South Asian character, has been amenable to discussions around recasting Apu, the creators of the show have been less so. He had chosen two possible voices, an effeminate one and a tougher one. Hank Azaria. [35], Azaria produced and starred in the sitcom Imagine That in 2002, replacing Emeril mid-season in the NBC lineup. [68] Azaria worked with the writers to "infuse" the script with some of his ideas about the character, "particularly with the 'married' relationship between Gargamel and [his cat] Azreal [sic]" which Azaria conceived. Reps for Azaria did not immediately return Variety’s request for comment. The character is so great that, to make fans laugh hysterically, all he has to do is yell Skinner’s name. 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