I’ve been trying to think of a way to pin this on NBC, but for once, it’s not their fault: during a particularly heated moment on the set of Community yesterday, crazy old man Chevy Chase said the N-word.
Multiple sources confirm to TVLine that Chevy Chase dropped the N-word on the set of the NBC comedy Friday afternoon in the presence of his African-American co-stars Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover. According to an insider, the acting vet was struggling with his character’s dialogue and, in a moment of frustration, uttered the racial epithet.
The slur was not directed at Brown and Glover specifically, maintains another source close to the production, who adds that Chase has grown increasingly unhappy with the dark direction of his character, the bigoted Pierce Hawthorne. But it nonetheless caused enough of a stir to briefly interrupt production. Chase eventually summoned the cast and crew together to issue a formal apology. (Via)
My favorite part of that blurb is Chase saying the word in the “presence of his African-American co-stars Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover,” as if it would have been TOTALLY OK had they not been there. On the plus side, at least he didn’t accuse Glover or Brown of stealing any pens. Life doesn’t always imitate art.
UPDATE: according to TMZ:
Chase was complaining about the direction of his character, who he feel has grown increasingly bigoted as the years have gone on. We’re told Chase was becoming uncomfortable with the material and was frustrated that his previous conversations about the writing had seemingly gone ignored.
According to our sources, Chase got so heated while discussing his character, he yelled out something along the lines of … What’s next? Am I gonna say the word ni**er? (Via)
In context, it’s not as bad as it originally sounded. Chase wasn’t saying the word out of anger at anyone; he was proving his own weird point about how he thinks the writers have turned Pierce into an angry, hateful racist, a notion many fans would agree with. Still, Chevy, it’s best not to use that word. Ever.