The Simpsons finally explored Carl Carlson’s roots over the weekend as part of a long overdue conversation about race.
On Sunday’s episode on Fox Homer’s coworker goes on a journey of discovery after sparking a new relationship with a Black woman which in turn makes him wonder about his own heritage. Reflecting on the episode, writer Lonni Steele Sosthand told TVInsider: It’s a more direct conversation of race than we’re used to having on The Simpsons.’The decision comes after the character was voiced by white actor Hank Azaria for the first 32 seasons of the long running animated comedy, before being replaced by Black actor Alex Désert. He’s of Haitian descent, and he talked about growing up in a Jewish neighborhood in New York. It’s not literally what we’re doing with Carl Sosthand explained.
Just as it’s not exactly like my experience growing up multiracial but it’s thematically about the assumptions we make about identity. It was interesting to get into it with this character. It really adds another layer to him.’Back in season 24, The Simpsons introduced viewers to Carl’s Icelandic adoptive parents, which gave them a platform to build on for the new episode. The writer added: People who are adopted often are curious about their birth parents and their heritage so we honor that history but also take him in a different direction in this episode where he discovers another aspect to his identity that he hadn’t explored before. This included taking viewers on a fascinating under told history of Black cowboys’, and the writers were glad to bring that into his character ‘in an unexpected way .
Sosthand said: We’re not saying you have to conform to a stereotype or anything to be authentically Black. There are all kinds of authentic stories. It was really rich territory once we opened it up.
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