Chevy Chase Leaving "Community"

Comedy veteran Chevy Chase is leaving NBC's "Community," effective immediately, with episodes still left to film in the show's fourth season. Chase has been a vocal and ardent critic of his own show, admitting in interviews that he does not think it is funny and clashing publicly and repeatedly with the show's creator and former runner, Dan Harmon.

Both sides claim it is a mutual decision, but there's little question that Chase's actions over the last half-year have been a detriment to the show. He told the BBC earlier this year that accepting the role as "Pierce" was "A big mistake! I just sort of hung around because I have three daughters and a wife, and I figured out I might as well make some bread, every week, so I can take care of them in the way they want... The hours are hideous, and it’s still a sitcom on television, which is probably the lowest form of television.”

Chase made headlines earlier this year for allegedly saying the n-word multiple times during an on-set meltdown. Chase left a vicious voicemail for creator Harmon this year, which quickly went viral. That set up a showdown with the network, who chose to remove Harmon for the show's fourth season.

Chase, a veteran of "Saturday Night Live," has a reputation as a very difficult performer, and his clashes with his fellow actors are hardly a surprise given his past.