'Community': Creator Dan Harmon apologizes for playing Chevy Chase's angry voicemail

First there was controversy—now an apology. After news broke over the weekend that Community star Chevy Chase and creator Dan Harmon have been feuding, the latter issued a mea culpa on his Tumblr Tuesday afternoon for publicly playing a profanity-laced voicemail that Chase left him.

Explaining that he did not wish to “extend the story’s life and cause more fans discomfort” but that it was “conspicuously weird of me to say nothing at all about the giant fart with my name on it that you’ve been inhaling,” Harmon took responsibility for sharing the voicemail at a monthly comedy show that he hosts: “I made the horrible, childish, self-obsessed, unaware, naive and unprofessional decision to play someone’s voicemail to me. [Chase] didn’t intend for 150 people to listen and giggle at it, and I didn’t intend for millions of people to read angry reports about it. I was doing what I always do, and always get in trouble for doing, and always pay a steep price for doing. I was thinking about myself and I was thinking about making people laugh. I was airing my dirty laundry for a chuckle.” While noting that “I have to just acknowledge my mistake and apologize for it to the fans,” Harmon also stated: “The giant mistake I made was involving someone else in that game of russian roulette, someone that didn’t have an opportunity to say ‘yeah, hilarious, let’s do this.’ That was a dumb, unclassy, inconsiderate move on my part. I’m very sorry it’s reflecting poorly on the show.”

You can read his full apology and explanation here.

Tensions apparently bubbled to the surface during the shooting of the final episode of the NBC comedy’s third season, when Chase left the set following a dispute over dialogue. At the wrap party, Harmon reportedly tried to lead the crowd in a nasty chant against Chase, whose wife and daughter were present as well, which prompted Chase’s R-rated phone rebuttal.

Read more:

Chevy Chase’s angry ‘Community’ rant (and four other vicious voicemails)

From the EW Archive: ‘He’s Still Chevy Chase (And You’re Not),’ August 2004