It lasted for six seasons and was a film! What once seemed like a pipe dream to fans of the show Community is quickly becoming a reality. Actor Joel McHale confirmed the existence of a Community movie in a tweet today, writing, “… And A Movie” and tagged many of his co-stars as well as the streaming site Peacock. For supporters, getting back to Greendale Community College after a long absence has been a difficult and frustrating process. Meta-commentary and humour abound in this series about a community college study group that becomes like a family.
The phrase “six seasons and a movie” refers to one such ongoing meta-joke. A lot of people really like the idea, and they wanted to see it implemented in the show. Yet, when NBC decided to terminate the show after Season 5, all hope looked lost. Then Yahoo! Screen brought it back for a sixth season, but there was still no word about a movie. With talents like Donald Glover and Alison Brie having found their start on the show, it was hard to imagine the movie doing well. Because of this, many viewers had a hard time believing that they could make time for a movie. Seven years have passed since the debut of the sixth season, and until just this month, fans had very little to hold on to in terms of information about the movie. When two distinct series regulars left the show within a matter of weeks, it gave viewers a reason to believe.
In an interview, Brie stated, “the wheels are spinning” and “there’s been movement.” Then, in an interview, Yvette Nicole Brown claimed that everyone in the cast was eager to participate and scheduling conflicts were the only remaining obstacle. There have been many discussions, as Allison [Brie] said the other day. This is something we’ve been saying for a long time: it’s not for want of wanting to. We’d all want to be involved, but at this point, everyone’s gone in a separate direction. It’s like, how do you find a way to have Donald Glover [who played Troy], Gillian Jacobs [who played Britta], and Danny Pudi [who played Abed] all in the same area at the same time again? This is the greatest jigsaw puzzle I can imagine, yet it, like all others, can be solved. So, I think that will happen; when exactly is unclear, but discussions are on at the present time.
Even Dan Harmon, the man behind the hit show Community, had something to say about it recently. “Consistent with what Allison [Brie] has mentioned, I can also attest to the fact that legitimate negotiations and agreements are now underway. There’s a backstory; whether or not we’ll keep it is anyone’s guess, but we needed to put something together so that we could shop it around to other places. The bargaining phase has begun.”
However, it now appears that the discussions were fruitful, and plans have been made. McHale and Peacock have both confirmed the film’s production on tweets.
McHale first tweeted that he and his co-stars (Glover, Brie, Brown, Danny Pudi, Ken Jeong, and Gillian Anderson; we’re guessing he meant Gillian Jacobs) will all be returning for a reunion film alongside Jim Rash. It’s official: there will be a Community film. Fans are happy with the announcement that the film will be made, even if they know nothing about its narrative or release date.