Donald Glover's Exit From Community Hit Danny Pudi Particularly Hard
For four and a half seasons, fans watched the weirdly wonderful friendship between Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) blossom on "Community." They lived together, enjoyed "Inspector Spacetime," fought in paintball wars, battled over blanket and pillow forts, did their "Troy and Abed in the Morning" schtick, and sang odd-yet-brilliant musical numbers. Then it all came to an end when Donald Glover left the show.
After his departure, Glover would go on to create the series "Atlanta," for which he would win two Emmy Awards. He starred as the voice of adult Simba in the 2019 film "The Lion King" and as Lando Calrissian in "Solo: A Star Wars Story." Then, of course, we have his rap career as Childish Gambino (spoofed in "Community" as the boat Troy sails away on, "Childish Tycoon"). Glover also posted a series of notes on Instagram where he talked about leaving for personal reasons. Whatever the full explanation is, Glover leaving was heartbreaking for the character of Abed, who lost his bestie, for Danny Pudi, who played the role, and for fans who adored their connection.
Back in 2014, right before Glover's final episode — "Geothermal Escapism" — Pudi spoke to The Wrap about what was coming and how difficult it was to say goodbye.
'I'm just thankful for it'
The Troy/Abed relationship was pretty pivotal for the series. I'm not saying "Community" fell apart when Glover left because I still loved every minute of it. There was just a sweetness about their relationship that I missed. I mean, these two guys wholesomely rapped with Betty White, for Starburns's sake.
Pudi was asked about his feelings on Glover's departure. He told The Wrap:
"It's mixed feelings, like anything. Donald is a great friend. It's not just Troy and Abed, it's Danny and Donald, too. So, you're dealing with those emotions. We work a lot of hours together and in close quarters. I don't want to say it's sad, because I'm excited for him. There's a feeling of instant nostalgia. You start thinking about those first times you're together, the very first exchange you have when he's telling you your breath is horrible — everything starts flashing. I'm just thankful for it."
I guess that sort of mitigates the sadness of it all, how supportive Pudi was of Glover's decision to move on. Plus, they do spend time together off the set, something that Glover said in a Music Choice video from 2011. He explained, "We really like hanging out with each other, like I'm hanging with Danny all the time."
Here's hoping that every one of the cast members will return for the "a movie" part of the #sixseasonsandamovie hashtag we all posted relentlessly. The "Community" movie goes into production this summer.