Mindy Kaling Responds To Backlash Over Playing Velma In 'Scooby-Doo' Spin-Off

Mindy Kaling has hit back in response to criticism over her role as Scooby Doo's Velma in a new spin-off series about the character.

The 42-year-old will be voicing the character and producing the 'adult animated comedy series', which will feature on HBO Max.

PA

Fans seemed excited when HBO first announced the series, with the network calling it 'an original and humorous spin that unmasks the complex and colourful past of one of America's most beloved mystery solvers'.

But some of the reaction was less positive when more information was released, explaining that Velma Dinkley would be reimagined as South Asian.

Speaking to Seth Meyers on Late Night With Seth Meyers, Mindy explained: "When it was announced that I was going to do the voice of Velma, people were very supportive and happy on Twitter. And so I felt great.

"These are really intense fans, you know - cartoon, comic book fans, those are huge fans. And especially [for] a legacy show like this.

"Then it was announced about a month ago that the Velma character would be reimagined as South Asian.

"And people were not happy.

"There was a lot of, like, 'So not Velma!'

"Those kind of tweets. 'Not the classic Velma that I'm always thinking about!'"

Hitting back at these comments, Mindy continued: "First of all, I didn't know that she elicited such strong reactions in either direction.

"She's such a great character.

"She's so smart and I just couldn't understand how people couldn't imagine a really smart, nerdy girl with terrible eyesight, and who loved to solve mysteries, could not be Indian.

"Like, there are Indian nerds. It shouldn't be a surprise to people."

While she conceded that the comments had only came from a small number of people, she continued: "It really made me think, 'OK, we've got to be really careful with this character.'

"Which we will be, because we really love her and she's going to have great adventures."

Velma will be a standalone series which will serve as the 'origin story' for the Monster Inc. gang's designated brainiac.

According to Variety, the show has been given a 10-episode order with Charlie Grandy, Howard Klein, and Sam Register also serving as executive producers alongside Kaling.

Topics: Entertainment, Celebrity

Rebecca Shepherd

I'm Becky - a journalist at LADbible. I graduated with a First Class BA in Journalism before going on to cover criminal court cases, medical tribunals and breaking news for the national media - which inevitably and eventually became as glum as it sounds. Can often be found rocking a bag for life - which I made a 'thing' way before Rihanna. You can contact me at [email protected]

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