'How I Met Your Mother' bosses apologize for 'yellowface' episode

Jan. 15 (UPI) -- If you were uncomfortable with How I Met Your Mother's most recent episode, in which Jason Segel's character travels to China to learn from kung fu masters, you weren't alone.

When those kung fu masters turned out to be actors Josh Radnor, Cobie Smulders and Alyson Hannigan sporting stereotypical accents and garb, social media users adopted the hashtag #HowIMetYourRacism to criticize what they described as "yellowface."

I thought the transphobia in #HowIMetYourMother was bad enough. An entire episode of yellowface? Really? #HowIMetYourRacism

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— JanuaryCait (@JanuaryCait) January 15, 2014

#HowIMetYourRacism Hey, Katy Perry called and wants her costume back. Oh wait, she stole hers too. pic.twitter.com/16BqDencEc

— Suey Park (@suey_park) January 15, 2014

"Hey guys, sorry this took so long. @himymcraig and I want to say a few words about #HowIMetYourRacism," Bays tweeted.

With Monday's episode, we set out to make a silly and unabashedly immature homage to Kung Fu movies, a genre we’ve always loved. But along the way we offended people. We're deeply sorry, and we’re grateful to everyone who spoke up to make us aware of it. We try to make a show that's universal, that anyone can watch and enjoy. We fell short of that this week, and feel terrible about it. To everyone we offended, I hope we can regain your friendship, and end this series on a note of goodwill. Thanks.

[Entertainment Weekly, Cosmo]