Fortnite developer Epic Games said it will adapt an image featuring light-skinned shopkeeper Apu Nahasapeemapetilon as part of the newly launched season of The Simpsons.
Fans spotted the photo earlier this week on the wall of Moe’s Tavern, where the classic “Simpsons” image shows Apu, Barney, Homer and Principal Skinner during their tenure as barbershop quartet The Be Sharps.
Apu is incorrectly shown with the same yellow skin tone as his colleagues, although many were quick to point out that the character is correctly depicted in other photos in the same location.
As bad as it looks, I’m sure it was an oversight. It’s in a different photo, shown correctly https://t.co/Rqyy5o79p3 pic.twitter.com/Q6mS2aV4XJ
— dill (@nescartridges) November 4, 2025
Now, amid news reports suggesting that Epic Games was somehow trying to erase the character, the developer has responded with a miniature statement posted on social media. “This was not intentional, this will be adjusted in our next release” – Epic Games he wrotein an update on your Fortnite status account.
In recent years, Apu began to fade more and more into the background of The Simpsons following the release of the 2017 documentary The Problem With Apu, which harshly criticized the character as a racist South Asian stereotype. Long-term voice actor on The Simpsons, Hank Azaria, later announced that he would no longer play the role, and since then the character has only appeared in non-dialogue roles.
Earlier this week, Epic Games celebrated an augment in player numbers after the launch of Fortnite’s “The Simpsons” season to positive response. Fans have expressed appreciation for the game’s Easter egg-filled recreation of Springfield, though there has been criticism over this week’s introduction of fresh pet-like Sidekick cosmetics that must be purchased multiple times before they can be fully re-customized.
The next event in Fortnite will be a major end-of-year event on November 29, during which the mini-season of The Simpsons will end and a fresh era in the game will begin, which is Chapter Seven – assuming there will be a Quentin Tarantino crossover of sorts in the game.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s news editor. You can contact Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
