Yvette Nicole Brown Leaving 'Community'
Yvette Nicole Brown has arguably been the heart of Community since its debut in 2009 -- which is why this news is so devastating to the show itself: Brown is leaving Community after five seasons.
Brown, who played the devoutly-religious, slightly-judgmental, but nonetheless lovable Shirley Bennett, requested to be released from her contract for personal reasons.
However, Brown's reasons for departing have nothing to do with any sort of dissatisfaction with the show, which was recently revived for a sixth season by Yahoo! Screen after being canceled by NBC. Rather, Brown asked to be released in order to take care of her sick father.
"My dad needs daily care and he needs me," says Brown, of her decision. "The idea of being away 16 hours a day for five months, I couldn't do it. It was a difficult decision for me to make, but I had to choose my dad."
This means Brown will be the latest original cast member to depart the series over the last two years, following Chevy Chase and Danny Glover's exits. Executive producers Dan Harmon and Chris McKenna, who were quick to honor her request to be released from her contract, recognize just how big a void Brown's departure will leave in the cast.
"Yvette was an integral part of Community and is irreplaceable. We are sad to see her go and wish her the very best," said Harmon and McKenna, in a joint statement.
Of course, Brown has nothing but positive feelings towards her Community family. She notes that Harmon "has been so wonderful about it all. He told me, 'Yvette, I'm praying for your dad.'" Brown has even expressed an interest in coming back for a guest spot in the future. "I am totally open to whatever Dan decides," she says. "I'm glad it won't be hard for them to explain where she is. She has three kids, a degree and a business. There are a lot of ways to explain her [departure]."
Brown will be keeping busy, however, as she has signed on to take a recurring role on the midseason CBS reboot of The Odd Couple. Since it's a multi-camera sitcom, the comedy will allow the star a more flexible schedule. "A multi-camera sitcom is a better fit for the life I have now," says Brown. "I can't say enough how much I respect Sony and Dan for how they handled this profound change in my life."
Luckily for fans of the show, Brown will continue to be as much of a presence online for Community as she was as a cast member. "I'm still Community's biggest fan and I'll still live Tweet episodes," Brown says. "It's very bittersweet. I can take care of my dad but won't be with my TV family. I don't want the fans to worry; it's going to be fine. Greendale is the heart of the show, not any particular character. Even if characters come and go, the heart of Greendale remains."
Naturally, this leaves the question of what's in store for the future of Community. With the departures of Brown and Breaking Bad star Jonathan Banks (who is returning to AMC to star in Better Call Saul), the producers are now looking to add two new characters: a consultant hired to help improve Greendale Community College, and a retired salesman attending Greendale to reshape his life. Season 6 is likely to be a fairly big departure for the show, as the comedy must reinvent itself with only four of the original study group seven remaining. But if any show can pull off the "self-referential, wink-and-nod" reinvention, it's Community. Still, it's hard to imagine the show will be the same without Shirley, as Brown really was the heart of the series, in a lot of ways. Then again, we got five great seasons with the character, so that's something worth being happy about.
We wish Brown and her father all the best.
Via: TV Guide
Credit: Vivian Zink/NBC