He was perhaps distracted, texting somebody while he typed, but Joel McHale, who plays former lawyer (and current community college study group leader) Jeff Winger in NBC's beloved, jerked-around comedy Community, came to Reddit for an AMA (Ask Me Anything) session Thursday.
He followed in the footsteps of fellow Community stars Donald Glover, Danny Pudi, Gillian Jacobs, and Yvette Nicole Brown, and a group of the show's writers, all of whom have spent time on the site before. It was pretty clear he was there simply to promote the show's season 4 premiere: He chose Community catchphrase “Oct19isTonight” as a username.
And while he wasn't completely forthcoming about the show's offscreen troubles with showrunner Dan Harmon and costar Chevy Chase, both of whom have since departed, he didn't ignore those questions either. And as a comedian, he didn't shy away from questions about awkward boners and breast milk.
From an actors perspective, how has the attitude of the set changed since Dan Harmon's departure? (tom_riddler)
We as a cast have become more vocal on about jokes in scripts and such. Since we've lived with these characters for four years we have a pretty good sense of what they might say or do. Or I like to think I have a pretty good sense. Damn, I hope I do by now
We have seen a lot of changes in Jeff's character during his journey toward becoming a "good person." Do you think these have been innate changes to Jeff's personality, or do the other members of the group bring out the best in him? (fluffynukeit)
I hope any change Jeff goes through take place glacially. I think that's more real. In real life it's usually not an about-face. I love that he's slowly learning and has to learn some of the same lessons over and over again. Jeff relies on the group. They're his family. That alone is a big change for him.
Who is your favourite actor on set to work with? Is Danny Pudi as cool as Abed in the show? (WhiteTrashRedditor)
Danny is one of the best people on the planet. People are attracted to him like he's the president.
What was it like growing up in Italy? (okayc0mputer)
I don't know. I left when I was 3. Food was really good but it was pretty much breast milk the first year I was there.
I know that you're a married man and probably have a happy marriage. However...
- During Alison Brie's "Santa Baby" lapdance, what did you think about to avoid an awkward erection?
- Also, did you know Ken Jeong has a medical degree from UNC (Go Heels) . . . and would you ever trust him to operate on you?
- Finally: Favorite Childish Gambino song? (readcommentbackwards)
I had to imagine Ken Jeong's medical degree to avoid the awkward boner. I was also wearing a cup(as I always do). Picking a favorite Childish Gambino song is like picking your favorite type of puppy. They're all good.
How long DOES it take to get that perfect kind of bedhead? (Cyense)
6-8 hours. Depending on what time I go to bed.
Given that Chevy Chase seems like a nightmare and didn’t really want to be there, was he professional about it every time “action!” was called? (themadnooch)
When Chevy was in the zone and liked what he was doing he would nail it.
My question is: How does the show feel without Dan Harmon? (NikkiNavs)
The show is different in that the creator of it isn't there. So that was weird. Thankfully there were some writers from the beginning to help guide for all the new people.
how big is your forehead REALLY? (Girrzimm)
IMAX
Photo via Wikimedia Commons