Chevy Chase Leaving "Community"
Nov 21, 2012
by Natalie Abrams


In news that should shock pretty much no one, Chevy Chase is leaving "Community", TVGuide.com has confirmed.

Chase, who played millionaire Pierce Hawthorne since the show's premiere in 2009, has amicably parted ways with the show effective immediately, as first reported by Deadline. "Community's" fourth season still has at least one more episode to shoot, in which Chase will not appear.





The 69-year-old actor has had a rough relationship with the NBC comedy, once calling his participation in the series a "big mistake." "I think the reason I have stuck around is because I love these kids, the cast - they are very good. It's not like I am working with the great innovators of all time, but at the same time, they are my friends."

That wasn't the first time Chase has stirred up controversy about the show. His previous feud with fired showrunner Dan Harmon resulted in Harmon cursing at Chase during the show's wrap party and putting angry voicemails from the actor on public display.





This season, production on the sitcom was briefly shut down after Chase dropped the N-word on set after becoming increasingly frustrated with the direction of his bigoted character. Though his African-American co-stars Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover were with him at the time, the epithet wasn't directed at either actor or at any person in particular.

Nevertheless, production was temporarily halted until Chase formally apologized to the cast and crew.





A source says it's unclear whether Chase's departure will be addressed on the series.

"Community" is slated to return Thursday, Feb. 7 on NBC.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Chevy-Chase-Leaving-Community-1056774.aspx

This is probably Community's last season so what's the point?

Exclusive Details: "Community's" Surprising Plan to Write Out Chevy Chase
by Michael Ausiello
November 29, 2012


Chevy Chase‘s abrupt departure from "Community" last week left the show’s writers zero time to craft a big farewell for his curmudgeonly character, Pierce Hawthorne — so it’s a good thing they didn’t have to.

Sources confirm to TVLine that the Season 4 finale, which was shot out of sequence once word came down that Chase was exiting, includes a cliffhanger that leaves the fate of several characters up in the air — one of them being Pierce.



As a result, should NBC renew the show for a fifth season, it won’t be tough to explain why Pierce is MIA.

“Episode 413 wasn’t intended to set up his departure,” notes an source. “It just worked out that way.”



Meanwhile, rumor has it "Community" may have devised a way to include Pierce in one of the two Season 4 episodes shot after Chase’s exit (aka Nos. 411 and 412).

Remember, this is a show that has turned its actors into everything from cartoons to giant pillowmen.

http://tvline.com/2012/11/29/chevy-chase-leaving-community-spoilers/

Knowing that Chevy Chase is leaving might actually entice me to watch the show. I can't stand him at all, but I love Joel McHale and Chevy is really the only reason I haven't watched it.

At the beginning, Pierce was a bit weird (just being 60 years old and a student is weird in itself), but he was still a functioning human being and a legit member of the study group. For every oddball thing he did, he also gave some real fatherly/helpful advice to a younger member of the group. He was an actual fleshed out character.

By comparison (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Flanderization) in the later seasons, Pierce was an extremely one-dimensional impish dweeb that was completely unbelievable as a person. He was when you get right down to it, a cartoonish buffoon of a villain.

In all seriousness, would anyone hire someone with such a bad reputation like Chevy Chase? Did Dan Harmon actually think Chevy Chase was suddenly going to change overnight after 40 years of being a legendary jerk? His behavior is common knowledge in the industry. The stories are legion of how awful he is to everyone; if you hire him you should know exactly what to expect and you don't get to complain about him after the fact.

In all seriousness, would anyone hire someone with such a bad reputation like Chevy Chase? Did Dan Harmon actually think Chevy Chase was suddenly going to change overnight after 40 years of being a legendary jerk? His behavior is common knowledge in the industry. The stories are legion of how awful he is to everyone; if you hire him you should know exactly what to expect and you don't get to complain about him after the fact.

Precisely! But sometimes someone may get overly optimistic that a leopard will change their spots; they rarely do though.

Chevy Chase ‘Doesn’t Care’ About Claims He Acted Like A ‘Jerk’ On ‘Community’ (https://deadline.com/2022/02/chevy-chase-doesnt-care-claims-jerk-community-1234932637/)

Chevy is definitely a jerk, but I still loved his participation in Community (the first season the best),,, it truly is too bad he can't be a rational person to deal with because he has talent, no doubt.