'Community' Season 7 Renewal Or A Movie? Show's Cast, Creator And Network Comment

Although the final episode of Season 6 should have been a clue to fans, prospects of another season of “Community” aren’t looking too good. However, that doesn’t mean the show is necessarily done as talk of a movie continues to float around at Yahoo!.

For those who didn’t see the Season 6 finale of “Community” on Yahoo!, it was basically an exploration of how improbable a seventh season would be, story-wise. That led many people to believe that both the Web company and series creator Dan Harmon weren’t going to be moving forward with more of “Community” as a TV show. Recently, speaking to Metro Weekly, star Joel McHale revealed the real problem facing a potential seventh season: money.

“All of our contracts were up after six years,” he told the outlet. “All the actors on the show, almost without exception - their stock has risen significantly, and it’s out of the pay rate that is affordable to make the show. So you’re not going to be able to get Alison Brie or Gillian Jacobs at a normal television salary anymore. There is just not enough money to be able to pay for the show.”

McHale’s comments were interpreted by many as an official announcement that “Community” is, once again, canceled for good. Fortunately for hopeful fans, the actor took to Twitter to backpedal on his comments a bit, saying that the show was not canceled and that he has no final say in the decision at all.

Meanwhile, Yahoo!, which picked up the show after NBC canceled it, released a statement saying that it’s partnership with Sony and “Community” is something it’s still actively exploring.

“We've seen tremendous value in our partnership with Sony and are continuing to discuss future opportunities for ‘Community,’" the statement read (via The Hollywood Reporter).

While another series pickup may be out of the question, fans of the show started the popular hashtag “#sixseasonsandamovie,” based on a joke from the show, as a campaign the first time the show was canceled by NBC. According to Harmon, a movie is much more likely the next and final installment of the Greendale study group that fans can hope for.

"I think there's a higher chance of a movie than a seventh season," he told THR. "I think it has to do with talent contracts. We've got a lot of very talented people whose contracts have run out, and they get to explore the world and see what comes of it. In that kind of situation, anybody coming to those people and rounding them up like the Magnificent Seven and saying, 'Who wants to do a movie?' — I think the chance of getting a 'Yes' to that is much higher than, 'Who wants to come back to Vietnam — the war's not over yet.' I think the idea of a movie just sounds more fun and also sounds like it has a hard out in terms of schedule."

Unfortunately, the creator also told the crowd at his podcast “Harmontown” that, unlike what Yahoo! wanted, he’s not able to immediately get to work writing a movie. He echoed this sentiment to Entertainment Weekly, saying that he needs to miss the show before he can go back to writing something great.

Meanwhile, comedian and actor Ken Jeong says he’d reprise his role as Ben Chang, the token lunatic of Greendale Community College, the moment that he’s asked. In the meantime, he’s content to act as the leading man on his very own NBC sitcom, “Dr. Ken.”

“I would love to do a movie. Doing a movie would be amazing,” he told a TCA press panel (via Deadline). “Those guys on ‘Community’ made me the actor that I am today. I wouldn’t be here as a lead on my own show.”

Would you want to see more “Community” as a TV show or are you finally ready to wrap things up with a movie? Comment below or tweet your thoughts to @TylerMcCarthy.