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Chevy Chase and Community creator Dan Harmon really, really hate each other
By EJ DicksonMarch 31st, 2012, 8:30 pmComments (16)
In the book Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live, someone who worked on SNL tells a story about Chevy Chase returning to host the show sometime in the mid '80s. After Chase arrives on set, he proceeds to verbally abuse every cast and crew member present, suggesting to openly gay cast member Terry Sweeney that they do a sketch where he has AIDS and the viewers see how much weight he's lost every week. Throughout the rest of the book, former SNL cast and crew members corroborate this story by discussing their own terrifying encounters with Chase, to the point where you kind of want to give them all a hug and suggest they join a Tim Meadows-led therapy group.
If you've read this book, you probably won't be surprised by the revelation that Chevy Chase, who plays the curmudgeonly Pierce Hawthorne on NBC's Community, is still a dick. This time, however, his dick-ness is being documented on the internet. According to Deadline (via Reddit), Community creator Dan Harmon gave a "Fuck you, Chevy" speech at the season finale wrap party, after Chase reportedly walked off set during the last day of shooting. Harmon led then the cast and crew in a "Fuck you, Chevy" chant in front of Chase's wife and daughter (!) before Chase left the party, later leaving an angry voice message on Harmon's machine (you can listen to it here).
Rumors of Chase being difficult to work with on Community have been floating around the Internet for months, and sources close to the show say that this is not the first time that he's walked off set. And it's unclear how this blow-up will affect his presence on the show, which is currently angling for a fourth-season renewal after returning from a hiatus earlier this month. For Community fans, however, what is clear is that the spat between Chase and Harmon might represent a break from the wave of post-renewal euphoria they've been riding since the show's return was announced last month. What happened to six seasons and a movie, guys?
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Commentarium (16 Comments)
Am I the only one who can't get the audio to work?
There's plenty of sniping in the Season 1 DVD commentaries too. I think there's a reason Chevy spent a lot of Season 2 in a cast in a wheelchair.
I agree. However- regardless of his compatibility with staff- it's a job. And his increasingly disgruntled nature might have to do with the fact that the writing reflects a caricature of a pre mocked caricature. AKA physical comedy to the extreme- mocked during the aforementioned monologue during his return to SNL. Maybe he's grumpy because no one has given his character anything legitimate to work with other than treating him like a "goofy" mr burns/ mr. magoo mashup. 25 years hiding from showbiz and his triumphant return turns into a rehashed schtick that made him quit in the first place- how happy would you be?
+1
Yeah, it is a job. So even if you're not totally in love with it, you do your best. That's how you get more work and move on to different projects, if you don't like this one. (And I disagree with you saying that Pierce has nothing legitimate to work with, but that's a whole nother argument.) Not by being a gigantic dick and throwing your weight around because you know you're famous and you can get away with it.
Agree with nope on this one.
I don't know about anyone else, but despite how much of an asshole someone is, I think leading a "fuck you chant" if front of someone's significant other and child is going way too far.
+1
agreed
Harmon vs chase is a clash of the dicks.
Nailed it. Harmon's a total douche. (A funny douche, I'll admit, but still a douche.)
Chevy gets a lifetime pass from me for the first two "Vacation" movies and "Caddyshack."
Kick his ass off the show. I'd still watch. It wouldn't lose a beat.
True story.
Pierce off the show just means more screen time for Annie and Britta and Shirley, yes? No it's a win-win-win-win situation for both the cast and audience, methinks.
I find it ironic Chase got angry at script changes since Pierce tore apart Annie's script in "Celebrity Pharmacology"