The Cast Of "Community" Then And Now

We got six seasons. Still waiting for the movie.

POP POP! Community has been off the air since 2015, and we miss the quirky group of community college classmates. The sitcom that started as a Spanish study group full of misfits ended up spawning six seasons of television (and hopefully a movie).

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We got quotable lines...

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...memorable scenes...

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...and plenty of paintball.

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And never forget the dean's magnificent costumes!

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While we wait for a class reunion, here’s a bit about what the cast has been up to since the sixth season wrapped on Yahoo over five years ago.

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Joel McHale (Jeff Winger)

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Since his time as Greendale Community College’s favorite sarcastic, narcissistic, and often shirtless lawyer (without an actual degree), Joel McHale has acted in a number of shows, including The X-Files, Difficult People, Santa Clarita Diet, Dr. Ken (with Community’s Ken Jeong), and Stargirl. In 2016, he starred as an annoyed Gen X magazine editor working with a crew of millennials in the short-lived sitcom The Great Indoors.

The witty former host of The Soup has also racked up an impressive number of hosting gigs, including Card Sharks, the Tiger King reunion special, and, of course, the aptly named The Joel McHale Show With Joel McHale. And we could never forget his episode on RuPaul’s Drag Race, where he appeared to annoy the crap out of Michelle Visage. If there is a phrase to describe Mr. McHale, it is “booked and busy.”

Gillian Jacobs (Britta Perry)

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On Community, Gillian Jacobs played the overly woke Britta Perry, the gang’s supposed moral compass, who typically caused more problems than she solved. Since starring as the problematic activist, Jacobs has appeared in numerous movies, including Life of the Party alongside Melissa McCarthy, Netflix’s comedy Ibiza, and the horror film Come Play. Among her myriad television roles, she starred with Paul Rust on Judd Apatow's down-to-earth comedy series Love and appeared on Dr. Ken and Rick and Morty. She also convinced me to buy countless cans of Diet Coke in her pre-trailers movie theater ads.

Danny Pudi (Abed Nadir)

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Abed Nadir of “Troy and Abed in the moooooooooooorning” fame. Community’s neurotic, film-obsessed nerd was always pushing the show into more meta territory (hence the six seasons and a movie line). Since the shuttering of his beloved community college talk show, Danny Pudi has been especially adept at snagging voiceover acting. He voiced Brainy Smurf (shocking) in Smurfs: The Lost Village, Tiny in Harvey Street Kids, and Huey in DuckTales. He also appeared on Dr. Ken (sensing a trend?) and, according to Instagram, is training for marathons and still looks like he’s 24 despite being 42.

Yvette Nicole Brown (Shirley Bennett)

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Before dipping out of the show’s sixth and final season, Yvette Nicole Brown joined her classmates around the study table as Shirley Bennett, the sugary-sweet, usually kind, but sometimes judgmental Bible thumper (although as it turns out, she really knows how to party, too). Brown, like Shirley, is also a HARD WORKER. Since leaving Community, she’s appeared in over 35 projects — everything from voiceover roles in Elena of Avalor and Lego Star Wars to recurring characters in Mom and The Mayor. She hosted Talking Dead, guest-judged on The Masked Singer, and, you guessed it, appeared on Dr. Ken.

Alison Brie (Annie Edison)

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Annie Edison may be the youngest of the group, but she’s also the uptight overachiever with something to prove, a role that Alison Brie has stepped into often while she waits for the Community movie to start filming. Mrs. Dave Franco has appeared in a number of films, including How to Be Single, The Disaster Artist (with her hubby), and The Post. This past year, she starred as a pair of anal, power-hungry menaces in Promising Young Woman and Happiest Season. On the television side, Edison recently concluded a problematic role in BoJack Horseman and wrapped up the critically acclaimed female wrestling comedy Glow (which may also get a film?). She wrote and starred in Horse Girl in 2020, as well as in her husband’s directorial debut, The Rental. She, too, was in Dr. Ken.

Donald Glover (Troy Barnes)

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On Community, Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino, played the lovably dumb jock (an OG himbo, if you will). Since dipping out of the show mid–Season 5, however, Glover not only grew a beard and had three kids but also transitioned to more serious projects. On the film side, Glover has jumped into major franchises like Spider-Man, Star Wars, and The Lion King, while over in TV land, he’s scooped up multiple Emmys and Golden Globes for his hit show Atlanta.

As Childish Gambino, he’s released two new albums and won five Grammys (although, sadly, not one for his fake Black Justin Bieber song from Atlanta). Next up, Glover will be teaming up with…checks notes…Malia Obama over at Amazon for a massive producing deal and starring alongside Phoebe Waller-Bridge in a Mr. & Mrs. Smith remake.

Ken Jeong (Ben Chang)

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Finally we get to Dr. Ken himself. After he was an actual real-life doctor, but before he was Dr. Ken, Ken Jeong played Benjamin Franklin Chang, aka Ben, aka Senor Chang, aka Kevin, aka El Tigre Chino, the Spanish teacher turned evil mastermind turned mole person living in the college’s air ducts.

Since Community’s end, Jeong has starred in films such as The Duff, Goosebumps 2, My Spy, and Scoob! He also fought his way into the cast of Crazy Rich Asians. Outside of the titular role in Dr. Ken, Jeong has appeared on Fresh Off the Boat and Magnum PI. Perhaps his greatest work to date, however, is shouting delightfully unhinged guesses with Jenny McCarthy as to the celeb identities on The Masked Singer.

Chevy Chase (Pierce Hawthorne)

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Before Chevy Chase exited the show in Season 4 because of conflicts with Community’s creator, Dan Harmon, he played the eccentric, arrogant, and extremely politically incorrect millionaire Pierce Hawthorne. While Chase was the show’s biggest star prior to airing, he has appeared in only a handful of projects since. His films include Hot Tub Time Machine 2, the National Lampoon sequel Vacation, and 2019’s The Last Laugh with Richard Dreyfuss. Recently he spent five weeks in the hospital and then told reporters the television industry is full of “shitheads,” so Chase is alive and well, it seems.

Jim Rash (Craig Pelton)

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Dean Dong! Jim Rash’s Dean Pelton was such a hit during his appearances in the first two seasons that he was promoted to a regular in Season 3. He spent most of the series trying to legitimize the chaotic community college, find excuses to wear costumes, and flirt with Jeff. While an actor, Rash is also the screenwriter of The Descendants and The Way Way Back, and since 2015, he has worked behind the scenes on both Thoroughbreds and Downhill. He has also snatched voice roles in shows like Mike Tyson Mysteries, DuckTales, and Star Wars Resistance and has popped up in episodes of Angie Tribeca and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Oh, and of course, he was also on Dr. Ken.