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CNN Doc Features Jay Chandrasekhar’s Account of Chevy Chase’s 2012 Slur and ‘Community’ Meltdown

The authorized film surfaces a firsthand account that corroborates earlier reports ahead of its Jan. 1 CNN premiere.

Overview

  • Director Jay Chandrasekhar says he was directing the episode the night Chevy Chase was fired after using the N-word on the Community set in 2012.
  • He recounts that tensions flared during a hand‑puppet blackface bit, Yvette Nicole Brown left the scene, and Chase refused to apologize while citing his past rapport with Richard Pryor.
  • Chandrasekhar says a leak to The Hollywood Reporter about a “racial incident” preceded a “full meltdown,” with Chase shouting that his career was ruined before leaving the set.
  • Contemporaneous reporting noted the slur was used while Chase was questioning dialogue and was not directed at Donald Glover or Brown.
  • The documentary also revisits long‑running friction with creator Dan Harmon and notes that production halted after the incident, with Chase exiting after Season 4 and returning for one episode in 2014.