Splitsider

Thursday, May 24th, 2012
Dramatic Television
11

Slightly Creepy Memo Sony Sent to the 'Community' Cast about Dan Harmon Leaked

by | May 24th, 2012

In the wake of hiring new showrunners David Guarascio and Moses Port and what was essentially the firing of Dan Harmon, Sony sent a talking points memo to the Community cast and crew. The hope was to make sure the press wouldn't blow up the story. So yeah, it TOTALLY worked. Was the sarcasm of that last sentence obvious enough? I want to make sure it was totes sars, considering how insane the coverage of this story has been. Ironically, this letter has extended the story even further. Read the slightly scary letter below and decide if any of the cast actually tried to heed this advice.

Team Community:

With last night's news of David Guarascio and Moses Port as new showrunners/EPs on "Community" running in the press, and since we know that cast members have interviews coming up this week, I wanted to forward some messaging we hope our cast will find helpful as they navigate questions that will undoubtedly come up. I know that David and Moses are reaching out to them all directly but I've also heard from some of the actors that they'd like some guidance on the topic.

I saw some of the tweets that went out and were glad they all addressed their own sentiments quickly, and we're hoping that the news will lose some steam over the next day, especially if we're not perpetuating the topic in any way.

We're tracking the coverage and conversation and will circle back if we feel the need to reshift our plan or messaging. Please let me know if you have questions.

Why did Dan get let go from the show?

We're not made aware of why staffing changes take place but I will always be grateful to Dan for his great work on the show and wish him only the best. We're also excited that we'll be back on NBC's schedule in the fall and are looking forward to working on those episodes.

Were you aware that Dan was going to be let go?

No, that's not something we're consulted on. I'm sad to see him go but I am looking forward to starting our next 13 episodes of "Community."

Did the studio or network consult with you about these changes?

No they didn't but we're looking forward to working with David Guarascio & Moses Port on a new season of Community.

What are their plans for the new season?

It's a little early to say at this point but we're looking forward the stories our characters will find themselves in come Sept.

Tags:

community, dan harmon, Leaked, Memos

  • http://sostark.tumblr.com Carleton

    I wonder if they're looking forward to the new season?

  • MakesNoScents

    So tired of hearing about all of this. Community simply isn't good enough, with or without Dan Harmon, to warrant this much coverage. Some alcoholic asshole lost his job, happens every day.

    • Itsonreserve

       Yeah.  I mean, I personally enjoy Community but I'm kind of over the story that a megalomaniac was fired for being uncooperative like if he ran any other show we would care.  He is very talented in my opinion!  But it happens, shows get new show runners all the time, and Happy Endings was very good this year, and quite wacky, and in my opinion more enjoyable as a season over Community S03.  At this point I wish the internet would just get over it and start looking towards redemption-watching his adult swim show, a job situation I assume he's better suited for anyway.

      But these talking points are definitely creepy, robotic, and blergh.

    • http://twitter.com/OneOfManyIans Ian

      I don't know if my internet works like your internet. My internet has articles with titles, in the titles are subjects. And if I have no interest in the subject, I don't have to click it and read about it. I'm guessing your internet forces you to read through everything? Maybe there is a setting you can fix.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1625377858 Jason Nafziger

    Everyone keeps saying "shows get new showrunners all the time," but has anyone bothered to look into the impact that has had on the shows themselves? What I'm asking is: has switching showrunners ever HELPED a show? Have ratings ever improved as a result? Has the quality of the show improved (which can be difficult to gauge, but even opinions/reviews would be helpful here)?

    I can think of a handful of shows that I remember hearing were replacing their showrunner (although this was not a term I was familiar with until the past few years, in retrospect I remember it happening before then) and I don't ever remember anyone being HAPPY about that or thinking that the show benefited from it.

    • Oxymorgan

      Cheers

      • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1625377858 Jason Nafziger

        When did Cheers change showrunners?

    • guest

      The Office

  • cooldude69

    I work for a company that occasionally has to deal with the press and the "suggestions" in this memo are actually pretty standard.  That's not to say it isn't a bit creepy, just that this is how basically any company would deal with this situation.  Tell everyone to deny knowledge of anything and act happy and excited for the future.  You see it in news stories all the time.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Hunter-Boyette/29717101 Hunter Boyette

    I like that when it starts to seem a bit threatening, the writer goes from 'we' to 'I', then changes back when it seems the point was made. This is like a Cliffnotes version of Animal Farm.

  • Jarthurtrain

    Oakley and Weinstien were better than Mirkin, and Al Jean and Mike Reiss were better than Sam Simon, in the case of the Simpsons

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