Actor and comedian Chevy Chase appeared on the most recent episode of Marc Maron’s WTF podcast (via The Playlist) and says he thought the NBC sitcom “Community,” in which he was a regular for four seasons, wasn’t funny enough for him.
Chase played Pierce Hawthorne in the series in 83 episodes across its first four seasons, co-starring with the likes of Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Yvette Nicole Brown, Alison Brie, Donald Glover and Ken Jeong.
Chase was fired from the show after reportedly using a slur on set, and in the years since fellow cast members have spoken out about his on-set behavior.
In the podcast episode, Chase says he has no ill will against show creator Dan Harmon for axing him from the series:
“I honestly felt the show wasn’t funny enough for me, ultimately. I felt a little bit constrained. 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.”
Chase was asked if he was difficult to work with, to which he responded: “I don’t think people really felt that way. I don’t know what my reputation was among people. I just always assumed I was okay.”
Harmon and co-writer Andrew Guest had almost finished a script for a “Community” film at Peacock prior to the writer’s strike. With that strike ending tonight, expect some movement on the project soon (and a lot more once the actor’s strike is over).
