Before you read:
- Mindy Kaling says she doesn’t care about backlash against South Asian Velma in new Scooby-Doo spinoff
- Fans Split Over Mindy Kaling’s East Asian Version of ‘Velma’
The upcoming animated TV series “Velma,” which stars Mindy Kaling, now has an official release date.
On Tuesday, Variety reported that the show will premiere on HBO Max on Jan. 12, 2023.
The Scooby-Doo spinoff, which has been created for an adult audience, shows the origin story of Velma Dinkley, “the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang,” according to Deadline.
In addition to voice acting, Kaling is also executive producing the show.
Joining her are fellow actors Constance Wu, who voices Daphne; Sam Richardson, who voices Shaggy; and Glenn Howerton, who voices Fred.
Earlier this year, Kaling addressed critics while giving a first look at the series.
“Nobody ever complained about a talking dog solving mysteries so I don’t think they’ll be upset over a brown Velma,” Kaling said during the Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront presentation in May.
She also talked about the controversy on NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” saying, “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.’”
“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 who loved to solve mysteries could not be Indian,” Kaling declared.
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