Gillian Jacobs Says “Community’s” ‘Lack’ of Success ‘Made the Show More Interesting’
Gillian Jacobs Says “Community’s” ‘Lack’ of Success ‘Made the Show More Interesting’
Virginia ChamleeWed, October 7, 2026 at 6:56 PM UTC
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Gillian Jacobs in 2026; Gillian Jacobs on ‘Community’Credit: Michael Tullberg/Getty; Adam Taylor/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/GettyCast members have confirmed a ‘Community’ movie is in the works -
Gillian Jacobs said the cast saw themselves as underdogs alongside their characters on the NBC comedy Community
The series faced cancellation threats before NBC ended it in 2014
Community returned for a sixth and final season on Yahoo! Screen in 2015
Gillian Jacobs says the “lack” of success was part of the beauty of Community
The NBC show — which also starred Joel McHale, Yvette Nicole Brown, Ken Jeong, Donald Glover, Alison Brie, Chevy Chase and Danny Pudi — attracted a passionate fanbase but was perpetually in danger of being canceled.
NBC pulled the plug in 2014, but the show returned for a sixth and final season on Yahoo! Screen the following year.
Joel McHale and Gillian Jacobs on ‘Community’Credit: Vivian Zink/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty
Speaking on the Wednesday, Oct. 7 episode of the Where Everybody Knows Your Name podcast with Ted Danson, Jacobs, 43, said, “I think our lack of ratings success also kind of made the show more interesting, because there was also this kind of meta commentary of the characters were underdogs and we were the underdog on the network.”
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“We weren’t getting network support, you know, we weren’t even really getting critical acclaim,” the actress added. “I mean, there were critics, there were TV writers, who I think kept the show alive by writing about it and interviewing us, but it was not like we were, you know, plastered on the cover of Entertainment Weekly.”
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She continued, “We weren’t a thing. But it... I think it made the show more interesting.”
Peacock announced in 2022 that it had picked up a feature-length version of the popular NBC comedy, and much of the series’ original cast — including McHale, Pudi, Brie, Jacobs, Glover and Jeong — were on board to reprise their roles.
Brown, 55, has also confirmed her return, saying in October 2024 that the film’s script was “being reworked” to include her character Shirley, per Deadline.
Back in April, Glover, 43, spoke to Entertainment Tonight, telling the outlet of a Community movie, “We were just on the text chain talking about it.”
He added, “We’re working on it right now. So, like, I know everybody’s been saying that for forever, but I swear to you, I’m not lying about this. I really think that something is gonna happen soon.”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
