A week ago, much to the delighted surprise of TV fans everywhere, the ‘Six Seasons and a Movie’ call became not merely a promise buta nearing reality, asPeacockrevealed that they would give the college sitcom a chance to conclude its story with a feature-length finale.
Sadly, amid the joy of knowing that this long-awaited movie would finally come to pass, was the disappointment in hearing thatDonald Gloverwasn’t signed on to reprise his beloved role as Troy Barnes. WhileJoel McHale,Gillian Jacobs,Alison Brie,Danny Pudi,Jim Rash, andKen Jeongwere all locked in, Glover, along withChevy ChaseandYvette Nicole Brown, were sorely absent from the cast list, and fans felt justified in their long-standing worry that Glover would not play the character again following his series departure in Season 5. But fret not, there’s hope on the horizon. During his panel at this year’sNew York Comic Con,Dan Harmonaddressed Glover’s absence from the film’s announcement, noting that, while Glover’s role in the movie hasn’t been finalized, he believes that theAtlantastar and creator will ultimately be involved.
AsVarietyreported, Harmon is optimistic about the movie’s chance to reunite the cast back together for one final adventure. While three of his original cast members are ultimately not attached to the project at this time, the situation is still a fluid one, and Harmon expressed optimism about Glover, in particular, being involved. Here’s what he told attendees about the actor’s absence from last month’s big announcement:
I think that Donald [Glover] is coming, based on word of mouth, but it’s just the deal isn’t official or wasn’t official. It would be difficult to really commit to doing this thing without Donald. So I believe he is coming back. I think if there’s names missing from a list, it’s because the names that are on the list, their deals are agreed upon enough that it’s OK to say they are on the list, and anybody that’s not on a list, it’s just not the case yet. So there is nothing official about anybody being out.
All Six Seasons of Community Coming To Peacock
While theRicky & Mortyco-creator didn’t address Brown’s notable absence quite as directly, Harmon’s comment does suggest that the actress will also be coming back as the incomparable Shirley Bennett, particularly as she has been publiclyopen and enthusiasticabout the project. Onsocial media, she has been championing its announcement and appears eager that it’s finally happening. Though Brown wasn’t part of the show’s main cast during its sixth and final season due to personal reasons, one would hope that, much like Glover, she’s expected to reprise the role in this much-anticipated streaming movie.
As for Chase, well, maybe don’t get your hopes up. The actor and Harmon have hada very public falloutover the course of the show’s run, with the actor leaving the series in Season 4 when the show’s creator was briefly fired. Harmon was much less optimistic about the possibility of Pierce Hawthorne playing a part in this upcoming film. Here’s what Harmon said, jokingly:
I don’t even know if it’s legal for him to come back. That may be out of my hands. There may be something I sign for with an insurance company.
While Glover has remained coy about whether he’ll play a part inCommunity’s movie follow-up, the actor claimed that he would be open to reprising his role as Troy Barnes duringa 2020 Zoom table read, but only time will tell.
There’s a lot left unknown aboutCommunity: The Movie, but it appears that all hope is not lost when it comes to Glover and hopefully Brown’s involvement. For now, here’s what we know for sure:Community: The Movieis finally a go after seven long years of uncertainty, and it’s expected to hit the streaming service sometime in 2023. Of course, Collider will continue to keep you posted on the latest details.
In the meantime, relive the memories at Greendale Community College with this Season 1 trailer:
