Joel McHale Confirms That 'Community' Movie Is a Go at Peacock

Community fans know better than to get their hopes up after cast exits, platform changes and a general sense of suspicion when it comes to their beloved show, but on Friday, Joel McHale gave fans new hope when he tweeted simply "...AND A MOVIE."

He tagged castmates Alison Brie, Ken Jeong, Danny Pudi, Yvette Nicole Brown, Donald Glover and Gillian Jacobs in the post. Additionally, McHale tweeted the account for NBC's Peacock streaming service. Jeong tweeted the same post.

Peacock later confirmed to Newsweek in a statement, "'Six seasons and a movie' started out as a cheeky line from Community's early seasons and quickly ignited a passionate fan movement for this iconic, hilarious and cool (cool, cool) NBC comedy," said Susan Rovner, Chairman, Entertainment Content, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. "We're incredibly grateful that 15 years later, we are able to deliver fans this promised movie and can't wait to get to work with Dan Harmon, Andrew Guest, Joel McHale, Sony and our partners at UTV to continue this epic comedy for Peacock audiences."

"Community was light years ahead of its time when it premiered on NBC in 2009 and we are thrilled to once again visit the brilliant minds of Dan Harmon, Andrew Guest and this impeccable cast," Jason Clodfelter, co-president, Sony Pictures Television Studios, added. "We are grateful to Peacock, our partners at UTV and to all the zealous fans who have cherished this iconic show."

In recent weeks, both Alison Brie and show creator Dan Harmon told Newsweek that a Community movie was likely, with Harmon going so far as to say, "I will now say it's a matter of 'when.' I have been so careful about [saying] that."

Community premiered on NBC in 2009. The show, about a quirky group of misfits in a study group at Greendale Community College, quickly amassed a cult following that has endured, especially since Netflix put the entire catalog of episodes on the streamer.

But multiple hiccups—including the exit and re-entry of creator Harmon, reported tensions between Harmon and actor Chevy Chase, and the exit of numerous original cast members including Chase, Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover—who departed to work on his critically acclaimed show Atlanta— dogged the series, as did a platform switch to Yahoo! for the show's sixth and final season.

The series won a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation – Comedy Series in 2012. The series also spawned the unofficial fan-led convention CommuniCon.

The running meta-theme of "six seasons and a movie"—which originated with Pudi's character Abed, a TV obsessive committed to making sure his favorite show, The Cape, got its due, became a rallying cry for fans who have been waiting for movie news since the show aired its finale in 2015.

Update 9/30/22 12:15 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information.