Here's how 'The Simpsons' replaced Hank Azaria wh a gay actor for a popular gay character

Contents:

• HOW 'THE SIMPSONS' REPLACED HANK AZARIA WH A GAY ACTOR FOR A POPULAR GAY CHARACTER
• ‘THE SIMPSONS’ RESTS HANK AZARIA’S GAY CHARACTER WH GAY ACTOR
• 25 YEARS AGO, GAY FAI JT WEREN'T TALKED ABOUT. THEN 'THE BIRDGE' H THE SCREEN
• HERE'S HOW 'THE SIMPSONS' REPLACED HANK AZARIA WH A GAY ACTOR FOR A POPULAR GAY CHARACTER
• HOW THIS YOUNG GAY BOY CAME OUT TO HANK AZARIA
• KNIGHT SHIFT – HANK AZARIA, HAPPY (AND GAY) IN “SPAMALOT’
• HANK AZARIA WORRIED GAY HOEBOY ROLE IN 'BIRDGE' WOULD OFFEND
• THE SIMPSONS RESTS INIC GAY CHARACTER WH PROUD GAY ACTOR BID TO BE MORE CLIVE
• “THE SIMPSONS” RESTS HANK AZARIA’S GAY CHARACTER WH GAY ACTOR
• ACTOR TONY RODRIGUEZ ON TAKG OVER VOICG GAY ‘SIMPSONS’ CHARACTER FROM HANK AZARIA: ‘THIS IS A DREAM COME TE’

HOW 'THE SIMPSONS' REPLACED HANK AZARIA WH A GAY ACTOR FOR A POPULAR GAY CHARACTER

Case pot: Openly gay Cuban-Amerin actor Tony Rodriguez recently land the job of voicg one of the animated show's popular LGBTQ characters, Jul, wh the help of the podst Gayt Episo Ever.

"Speakg wh Mackie and his -host Glen Lak on a recent episo of Gayt Episo Ever, Rodriguez discsed his strong intifitn wh Jul even before playg the role was a possibily. "The show troduced me to a lot of elements of gay culture that I wasn’t gettg anywhere else, " he wrote at the time. "That’s been good some stanc, but often also tght me bad lsons about what means to be a gay person, that way that happens when you’re young and your bra jt absorbs everythg whout really unrstandg .

"In the past two years, I have seen myself more the show, and by that I mean specifilly the part of Jul, who is gay, like me. "[The Simpsons] shownner, Matt Selman, had seen the supercut, heard the podst and heard you say my name, " Rodriguez outl on Gayt Episo Ever.

‘THE SIMPSONS’ RESTS HANK AZARIA’S GAY CHARACTER WH GAY ACTOR

It was a full circle moment for Rodriguez, who jok about his many failed Will & Grace dns on Gayt Episo every gay joke ever on the Simpsons vio fely had a hand this magic g together— Matt Selman (@mattselman) March 28, 2021Acrdg to Rodriguez, Azaria had already rerd dialogue for "Uncut Femm" well before The Simpsons produc ma their cisn to rest Sprgfield's var characters of lor. "The Simpsons" has replaced Hank Azaria as the voice of gay, Cuban hair drser Jul wh gay, Cuban edian Tony Rodriguez. Jul, a gay, Cuban character will now be voiced by a gay, Cuban actor: Tony Rodriguez.

“Tonight I make my but on The Simpsons as gay, Cuban Jul, ” Rodriguez, a longtime performer wh the Upright Cizens Briga, wrote on Instagram last month.

“In the past two years, I have seen myself more the show, and by that, I mean specifilly the part of Jul, who is gay like me, he’s Cuban like me, ” Rodriguez said an IGTV vio. This week marks the 25th anniversary of "The Birdge, " the smash h directed by Mike Nichols wh a screenplay by Elae May, starrg Rob Williams, Nathan Lane, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wit, Hank Azaria, Dan Futterman and Calista years ago, gay marriage was not only illegal, was banned most stat.

25 YEARS AGO, GAY FAI JT WEREN'T TALKED ABOUT. THEN 'THE BIRDGE' H THE SCREEN

But on March 8, 1996, dienc flocked to see somethg unual movie theaters: a lighthearted movie where openly gay men were the hero and a fay wh gay parents was lovg, happy and film not only gave Lane, Flockhart and Azaria their first big Hollywood breaks,  may have helped make mastream the ia of a non-heterosexual plot of "The Birdge" is simple.

But wh a few years after "The Birdge" there was "In & Out, " "Will & Grace, " "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, " "The L Word, " "Queer as Folk, " "Brokeback Mounta, " "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and more, all brgg more gay people to mastream entertament.

HERE'S HOW 'THE SIMPSONS' REPLACED HANK AZARIA WH A GAY ACTOR FOR A POPULAR GAY CHARACTER

"When me out, the gay prs was very hard on , " said Lane, who had e out to iends and fay as gay his 20s but had not ma public at the time of the movie, even duckg Oprah's qutns about durg an for the most part "The Birdge" was well-received for s portrayals for a lovg gay fay. The Gay & Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn (GLAAD) said, "We have seen so many films wh very one-dimensnal stereotypil characters.

Hank Azaria worried about his portrayal of Agador"I thk whenever you have straight or gay actors portrayg gays a humoro way, you are makg fun of what you also are treatg lovgly at the same time, " Azaria said an terview wh The Daily News.

I certaly n unrstand gay or Lat people havg a problem wh what I did… but I felt was thentic s own way. 3 ln on s openg weekend, the hight-grossg openg of a movie wh openly gay lead characters until Sascha Baron Cohen's "Bno" 2009, and stayed at #1 for four total box office for "The Birdge" was over $185 ln worldwi, makg Mike Nichols' most fancially succsful movie.

HOW THIS YOUNG GAY BOY CAME OUT TO HANK AZARIA

The star of "Brockmire" and of over 700 episos of "The Simpsons" told Banfield of his flamoboyantly gay, Lat character Agador the 1996 film "The Birdge, " "I had a lovely time dog that, workg wh the great Mike Nichols... Though Hank, who is Jewish, grew up a Spanish-speakg hoehold, he feels that role today would "go to a genue Lat actor, and perhaps even a genuely gay actor.

"know" you are gay. base thks you're gay.

KNIGHT SHIFT – HANK AZARIA, HAPPY (AND GAY) IN “SPAMALOT’

gay. publicist CiseRUMOR: The box-office hero has fought agast gay mors. December 4, 2001: "Cise Not Gay, Court Rul.

HANK AZARIA WORRIED GAY HOEBOY ROLE IN 'BIRDGE' WOULD OFFEND

at one pot, "I gus [the gay mors] sells.

THE SIMPSONS RESTS INIC GAY CHARACTER WH PROUD GAY ACTOR BID TO BE MORE CLIVE

gay and not sexually volved wh her bt iend and. She enared herself to gays and.

“THE SIMPSONS” RESTS HANK AZARIA’S GAY CHARACTER WH GAY ACTOR

'F--- , if they thk we're gay, let. 'em thk we're gay.

ACTOR TONY RODRIGUEZ ON TAKG OVER VOICG GAY ‘SIMPSONS’ CHARACTER FROM HANK AZARIA: ‘THIS IS A DREAM COME TE’

RESPONSE: Hunt fally addrsed the gay.