Chevy Chase as Pierce Hawthorne looking bewildered in Community
Chevy Chase has asserted that his feud on the set of Community was"too great a misunderstanding" as he reflects on his character's exit from the sitcom. Chase played Pierce Hawthorne on the cast of Community, having portrayed the millionaire towelette company CEO from season 1 through season 4, with a guest appearance in season 5.
However, Chase later left Community after allegedly using the n-word while questioning dialogue for Pierce in an upcoming scene. Although the slur was not directed at any Black cast members, he was fired for his use of the word. He later apologized for using the word, saying he used it to address a frustration about his character. Speaking with The New York Times about his upcoming CNN documentary, I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not, the actor said he was okay with the way he was written out of Community. He discussed how his use of the n-word on set was"too great a misunderstanding" for him to return, calling what happened a"visceral reaction" from younger people on set:NYT: You did? Chevy Chase: It was too great a misunderstanding of what I was saying and not saying. I thought that there was at least one person — and another who, for some ungodly reason, didn’t get me, didn’t know who I was, or didn’t realize for one second I’m not racist. They were too young to be aware of my work. Instead, there was some sort of visceral reaction from them. According to various reports, Chase was growing disillusioned with the way his character was being portrayed in the show, even walking off the set of the season 3 finale at one point. This included friction with series creator Dan Harmon, who chastised Chevy with expletives in front of his family during a filming wrap party. However, he was fired from season 4 while showrunners David Guarascio and Moses Port were in charge. This happened after Chase became angry during a scene where his character would use a hand puppet wearing blackface in a scene with Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover. This reportedly led to him sarcastically asking if he'd be using the n-word next. Given Chase's comment about the development of Community and his increasing ire for Pierce's racist character direction, it seems he's happier having been fired from the show for saying what he said. It seems his frustration came from a place of not wanting to portray a racist character, despite his use of the n-word to make a point about why he didn't want to. Subscribe to our newsletter for context on controversies Explore the full context behind high-profile celebrity controversies — like the Chevy Chase 'Community' dispute — by subscribing to the newsletter. Expect clear coverage, thoughtful context, and balanced analysis that keeps this topic in view. Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime. Although he was fired from Community for his use of the word, Chase has still gotten many roles in movies and TV shows since. The additional context doesn't justify his use of the slur, though, even if he wasn't using it toward someone in particular. Still, the actor seems satisfied with how his time on the series came to a close. I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not aired on CNN on January 1, and will be available to stream on HBO Max on January 31. 21 8.9/10 8/10 Community 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-PG Comedy Release Date 2009 - 2015-00-00 Network NBC, Yahoo! Screen Showrunner Dan Harmon Directors Tristram Shapeero, Joe Russo, Anthony Russo, Rob Schrab, Jay Chandrasekhar, Adam Davidson, Justin Lin, Steven K. Tsuchida, Kyle Newacheck, Victor Nelli Jr., Nat Faxon, Michael Patrick Jann, Anthony Hemingway, Ken Whittingham, Steven Sprung, Tricia Brock, Jeff Melman, Gail Mancuso, Duke Johnson, Fred Goss, Bobcat Goldthwait, Richard Ayoade, Seth Gordon, Beth McCarthy-Miller Writers Chris McKenna, Hilary Winston, Andrew Guest, Tim Hobert, Karey Dornetto, Stephen Basilone, Emily Cutler, Annie Mebane, Alex Rubens, Tim Saccardo, Paul Isakson, David Seger, Maggie Bandur, Monica Padrick, Matt Murray, Liz Cackowski, Lauren Pomerantz, Dan Guterman, Matt Roller, Ryan Ridley, Carol Kolb, Jon Pollack, Dino Stamatopoulos, Donald Diego Cast See All Main Genre Comedy Creator Dan Harmon Producers Dan Harmon, Megan Ganz, Garrett Donovan, Gary Foster, Patrick Kienlen, Russ Krasnoff, Andy Bobrow, Jake Aust Seasons 6 Streaming Service Hulu, Netflix Powered by Expand Collapse
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