'Community' Not Canceled, Yahoo! Still Discussing Show's Future

Photo of 'Community' season six cast, courtesy Yahoo! Screen

Despite reports that Community has aired its last episode, Yahoo! says that's not true.

Star Joel McHale said in a newly published interview with Metro Weekly that he believed the cast, whose contracts expired after the most recent sixth season, would cost Yahoo! too much to re-sign for another season or more.

"All of our contracts were up after six years,” McHale said. “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.”

A rep for Sony, however, said Tuesday the show has not been canceled, with Yahoo! also issuing its own statement on the matter: “We’ve seen tremendous value in our partnership with Sony and are continuing to discuss future opportunities for Community."

McHale himself also took to Twitter to backtrack a bit. "Easy sugar-bear, Community is not canceled," he tweeted on Tuesday afternoon, with the hashtag #QuestionMarkSeasonsAndaMovie.

Because most of the cast has already committed to other projects, Deadline is reporting the most likely scenario is a film to wrap the show and satisfy fans and actors alike. It would also hypothetically present an opening for former cast members to return if available.

Yahoo! revived the low-rated television comedy last summer when NBC opted not to renew it after its fifth season.