Chevy Chase says Community wasn’t “funny enough” for him

Anyone who watches comedy shows will have found one they don’t think is funny – but for Community star Chevy Chase, that was supposedly his job.

With the show airing between 2009-2015, it’s been a little while since viewers have seen new Community episodes on their screens – though seasons are frequently available to binge on streaming platforms like Netflix, and a movie is said to be in the works.

The official synopsis reads “A former lawyer attends a community college when it is discovered he faked his Bachelor’s degree. In an attempt to get with a student in his Spanish class, he forms a Spanish study group. To his surprise, more people attend the study group, and the group of misfits form an unlikely community.”

In the series, Chase played Pierce Hawthorne, a former moist towelette tycoon who was at one time the CEO of Hawthorne Wipes, but left the show due to alleged on-set issues.

Chevy Chase didn’t want to be “surrounded by” Community cast

In a recent interview on the WTF podcast with Marc Maron, Chevy Chase was quoted as saying the Community cast was “not funny enough for me” (via Rolling Stone).

NBC

“I honestly felt the show wasn’t funny enough for me, ultimately. I felt a little bit constrained,” he continued. “Everybody had their bits, and I thought they were all good. It just wasn’t hard-hitting enough for me.

“I didn’t mind the character. I just felt that it was… I felt happier being alone. I just didn’t want to be surrounded by that table, every day, with those people. It was too much.”

As the podcast episode brings up, Chase was fired from Community after allegedly making “racial cracks”, which other cast members such as Donald Glover have spoken out about. He’s had no contact with the series creator, Dan Harmon, since 2012.

“I have no idea if we’re okay,” he said. “I’ve never been not okay. He’s kind of a pisser. He’s angry. He called and said he was sorry. I love him now.

“I don’t think people really felt that way,” Chase said in response to being asked if he was difficult to work with. “I don’t know what my reputation was among people. I just always assumed I was okay.”

After his departure, Harmon was quoted as saying Chase was a “befuddled old man.”

All six seasons of Community are currently available to stream on Netflix. Find out what other movies are coming up below:

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