Silicon Valley has arguably never been better, but one of the show’s star is departing. HBO broke the news that T.J. Miller, who plays incubator owner Erlich Bachman on Mike Judge’s comedy, will not return for season five, saying “In Erlich Bachman, T.J. has brought to life an unforgettable character, and while his presence on the show will be missed, we appreciate his contribution and look forward to future collaborations.” Miller has stayed unnaturally quiet about his departure, but he recently told Entertainment Weekly that his “mutual” decision with HBO came down to an increasingly packed schedule.
“I work so much. I do every single platform. I do every single medium, down to podcasting with Cash Levy, all the way up to being in an underwater thriller with Kristin Stewart and wanting to be the funny part of that,” he explained. “So [I left] for my own sanity, and for the sake of slowing down, and being more present and able to devote more time to this myriad of projects that I have going on. The other thing of it is that I didn’t get into comedy to be a TV actor, and the second that I felt that there was a possibility of going on autopilot — of even phoning it in with this particular project — that’s when I say, ‘Okay, I gotta walk away. I have to do something where this won’t happen. I can’t allow myself to show up and give a B-plus performance on a show that is an A-plus when it comes to TV.’ That is a huge, huge part of it.”
Miller added, “I just have to make more things and different things.”
On top of creating his own show (The Gorburger Show) and starring in Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One, Miller is also an in-demand voice actor, with roles in The Emoji Movie and How to Train Your Dragon 3. And who could forget his award-winning performance (I assume) as the Mucinex blob? Miller’s only real concern about leaving Silicon Valley was the fan reaction. “Some people have said this online — ‘Oh, okay. Well, now he’s in Deadpool, so he thinks he’s too big for this television show.’ I’m not too big for anything,” he said. “I’m the f*cking Mucinex man. I will do it all to bring laughter to people.”
Including slapping children.
To read the rest of the lengthy interview, head to EW.
(Via Entertainment Weekly)
