Community originally aired on NBC from 2009 to 2014, with their sixth and final season premiering on Yahoo! Screen. The show, created by future Rick & Morty co-creator Dan Harmon, starred Joel McHale as a disbarred lawyer whose attempt to restore his law degree leads him to form a study group with six other misfit attendees at a community college.
While the show boasted stars like McHale and Chevy Chase, it also introduced mainstream audiences to the likes of Donald Glover, Alison Brie, and Gillian Jacobs, among other soon-to-be stars. Pretty much every cast member on Community has gone on to star in TV shows and movies that boast their incredible talent, as the following projects demonstrate.
10 The Joel McHale Show With Joel McHale
Prior to starring in Community, Joel McHale was mostly known for hosting the pop culture commentary show The Soup on E!. He hosted the show throughout his tenure on Community but has since transitioned to starring in various network sitcoms. However, in 2018, McHale got a shot at returning to familiar territory with a Netflix spiritual successor.
That series, The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale, has a similar format to The Soup, airing for nineteen episodes. The show also featured several other Community stars in guest appearances, including Alison Brie, Jim Rash, and Gillian Jacobs. Despite its positive reviews, the show was canceled by Netflix by the end of 2018 due to low ratings.
9 Don't Think Twice
While her character in Community was often the subject of comedic relief, Gillian Jacobs has spent the years since the sitcom playing very complicated characters, such as Mickey Dobbs on the Netflix series Love. However, perhaps her greatest role is Sam, an amateur improv comedian in Mike Birbiglia's ensemble drama Don't Think Twice.
The film follows a group of best friends in an improv troupe who reveal their true selves when one of them, played by Keegan-Michael Key, books a spot on a Saturday Night Live-type show. Jacobs' character is the heart of the film, giving her space to be an impressive improviser as well as an empathetic character figuring her life out as she goes.
8 G.L.O.W.
Alison Brie found success in independent comedies before she returned to TV in 2017 with the Netflix ensemble comedy GLOW. The show is based on a real women's wrestling program from the 1980s, focusing on the fictional, tumultuous behind-the-scenes life of a pro wrestler. Brie plays the lead role of Ruth, a struggling actress who finds success on the show.
The role led to a lot of acclaim for Alison Brie, who was nominated at the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards for her performance. Sadly, GLOW was canceled in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Ruth's storyline unfinished. However, its three seasons are still available on Netflix for fans who'd like to see a looser Alison Brie than Annie Edison.
7 Somebody I Used To Know
Although Alison Brie had to say goodbye to GLOW, her transition to screenwriting's found her working with real family and former Community cast-mates. Somebody I Used To Know was co-written by Brie and her husband Dave Franco, starring Brie alongside Danny Pudi as a woman intent on reviving a romance with her engaged ex.
For fans of Community, Somebody I Used To Know will feel nostalgic as Brie and Pudi share the screen together. The two quickly returned to the similar antics that they engaged in behind-the-scenes of Community. As a bonus, it energized the two for their eventual return to Greendale in the upcoming Community movie.
6 Mythic Quest
Unlike other Community cast members, Danny Pudi didn't stray too far from the world of comedy. The actor currently stars in the Apple TV+ series Mythic Quest, which takes place at a video game company and stars Rob McElhenney and Charlotte Nicdao as its argumentative head. Pudi plays Brad, the company's head of monetization.
Compared to the analytical and movie referencing Abed on Community, Brad is a much colder role for an actor like Danny Pudi. Nevertheless, in the show's most recent third season, he shines next to Ashly Burch's Rachel, a former game tester who rises up to replace Brad's job, albeit with his guidance and mentorship twisting her into a ruthless capitalist.
5 Atlanta
Out of all the cast members on Community, few have had a completely different career than Donald Glover. Following his departure during the sitcom's fifth season, the actor's musical career as Childish Gambino took off, netting him several Grammys and industry-wide acclaim. However, his most ambitious project is the surreal FX series Atlanta.
Atlanta stars Glover as Earn, a down-on-his-luck Princeton dropout who begins managing the burgeoning rap career of his cousin Alfred, played by Brian Tyree Henry. The show also stars Lakeith Stanfield and Zazie Beets as Alfred's best friend and Earn's baby mama, respectively. It's a show that gets harder to explain as it goes on, but is ultimately worth the wild ride.
4 Disenchanted
Yvette Nicole Brown is no stranger to television, racking up countless amounts of guest appearances and supporting roles in the years since Community. One of her most recent roles has been in Disenchanted, the 2022 sequel to the Amy Adams-led Enchanted from 2007. However, Brown is one of several actors who are brand-new to the sequel.
Brown plays an assistant to Maya Rudolph's Malvina, who in the world of Monrolasia is the Evil Queen. The film was critically panned, though many fans of the original film found it a nostalgic trip back to 2007 reliving one of Amy Adams' best roles. Yvette Nicole Brown is just one of many glowing spots in a film that will certainly make for a great movie night watch.
3 Saturday Night Live
Before he was moist towelette tycoon Pierce Hawthorne, Chevy Chase rose to prominence as one of the biggest comedy stars of the 1970s. He got his start on the first season of Saturday Night Live, making prominent appearances as then-president Gerald Ford, as well as the host of the fake news segment Weekend Update, though his tenure wouldn't be long.
Chase left the show after its first season but soon returned to host a total of nine times between 1978 and 1997. However, the notoriously difficult-to-work-with comedian was banned from hosting the show after his abusive stint in '97. Nevertheless, Chase has returned numerous times in guest appearances, such as the 40th anniversary special.
2 Crazy Rich Asians
Ken Jeong's first big break was the 2009 comedy The Hangover, where he played intimidating gangster Mr. Chow, a role he reprises in the film's two sequels. However, Community certainly tops The Hangover for Jeong's more insane role, playing Ben Chang, the study group's Spanish teacher throughout the show's first season.
Though it wasn't as wild as his role as Chang, Jeong's biggest hit post-Community was a supporting role in Crazy Rich Asians. The Jon M. Chu film, released in 2018, was the first major Hollywood studio film to feature a predominantly Asian cast, Jeong included. Jeong's role as the wealthy father to Awkafina's character, and was labeled a highlight of the film by critics.
1 The Way, Way Back
Jim Rash's role as Dean Pelton on Community is nothing short of iconic, though the actor also has quite a reputation in the world of independent film. While he earned an Oscar for his screenplay for The Descendents, Rash and his writing partner Nat Faxon also wrote, directed, and starred in a 2014 indie summer comedyThe Way, Way Back.
The film centers on a teen, played by Liam James, who is forced to spend a summer with his mom and her boyfriend. He later finds a community at a local water park, where Rash plays the deadpan Lewis who works at the swimsuit rental booth. Though it's a minor supporting role, it's a hilarious part for the actor who plays Greendale's eccentric dean.