Mindy Kaling has shared a first look at the new South Asian Velma as she spins off from the world of Scooby Doo and into her very own animated series.
As well as serving as director and showrunner for Velma, Kaling – who is known for her work on The Office (US) and The Mindy Project, among others – will also be voicing the titular star.
But while we’re used to seeing Velma Dinkley portrayed as a Caucasian woman with a bob haircut and glasses, the new series will welcome a different appearance and race for our heroine.
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Sharing a first-look of the series at the Warner Bros Discovery Upfront presentation in New York, Kaling said: “Hopefully you noticed my Velma is South Asian. If people freak out about that, I don’t care.”
At the time her version of the character was announced, the project was met with some backlash on social media.
Kaling continued: “There was a lot of, like, ‘So not Velma!’ Those kind of tweets. Not the classic Velma that I’m always thinking about!”
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Saying she didn’t quite understand the criticism, she went on to remind people that ‘there are Indian nerds’.
“It shouldn’t be a surprise to people,” Kaling said, assuring fans that she would do the character justice as ‘we really love her’.
The fact that Velma will be of South Asian descent has led to some negative reaction online, with one person previously saying: "So basically [you're] making a new character but need name recognition."
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Someone else said: "Then make her a new character?!? Why are y’all so scared to make a new character? “Cause they wouldn’t be popular so-” that’s no excuse, you wanna make a new character popular? Then expose that character to as many people as possible, by attaching the name of a popular character."
However, many people are looking forward to the new series, including Warner Bros. exec Tom Ascheim, who said at the TV Kids Summer Festival back in 2021: “We have a lot for children – a Mindy Kaling project called Velma because she was excited to reimagine what Scooby-Doo would be like if Velma were of East Asian descent and lived in a different world.”
A release date for Velma has not yet been confirmed, but we’ll keep you posted when we've heard more.
Topics: Film and TV