Everyone Turned On Chevy Chase, And Now We Finally Know Why
For a stretch of the late 70s through the early 90s, Chevy Chase was everywhere.
He wasn't just a comedy star — he was the guy studios banked entire franchises on. But for all his success, a different reputation was building just off-camera. One that slowly pushed him out of the spotlight he'd once owned.
It started behind the scenes, long before the public caught on. Former co-stars described him as arrogant, combative, and quick to humiliate people he worked with. The signs were there for years — but it wasn't until the 1990s and 2000s that the full picture came into view.
Chase's early life reads like a pedigree: grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt Crane, top-tier prep schools, Bard College. He started with a jazz band that included future Steely Dan members, dabbled in underground comedy, and eventually helped shape Saturday Night Live in its very first season. His "Weekend Update" desk and Gerald Ford impressions were iconic.
His catchphrase — "I'm Chevy Chase and you're not" — became a cultural staple. By the late 70s, he was the breakout star.
And then he left. After just one season on SNL, Chase walked away. Officially it was for love — he'd fallen for a woman who wouldn't move to New York. Unofficially, his sudden fame had already caused tensions on set, especially with John Belushi. Later, Bill Murray. One returning guest-host stint in 1978 ended with a backstage fistfight that had to be broken up by cast and crew. And that wouldn't be the last time.
"I Can't Do This Movie With Chevy"
The 1980s were huge for him on screen: Caddyshack, National Lampoon's Vacation, Fletch, Three Amigos. But behind the camera, the stories of misbehavior piled up. On the Christmas Vacation set, director Chris Columbus walked away from the job after one meeting.
"I can't do this movie with Chevy Chase," he told John Hughes — who promptly gave him Home Alone instead. Columbus said the encounter was "bizarre and surreal."
Chase had barely acknowledged his presence.
By the 90s, the cracks were public. His 1993 Fox talk show was a high-profile failure, canceled after five weeks. Nothing But Trouble, Cops and Robbersons, and Memoirs of an Invisible Man all tanked. Industry insiders whispered what audiences were starting to suspect — Chevy Chase was becoming box office poison.
On Community, It Got Ugly
Things didn't get better with age. On the set of Community, Chase clashed constantly with the cast and showrunner Dan Harmon. The worst was directed at Donald Glover. According to Glover and Harmon, Chase would deliberately make racist comments between takes, undermining Glover's rising star. One line reportedly said directly to Glover: "People think you're funnier because you're Black." When Harmon tried to apologize on his behalf, Glover brushed it off. But the tone on set had shifted permanently.
It reached a breaking point when Chase used the n-word during an angry rant about his character. Cast member Yvette Nicole Brown stormed off the set. She refused to return unless Chase was gone. Within days, his character was written out. He never came back.
Years later, when the cast reunited for a virtual table read during the pandemic, they chose the episode where his character dies. Chase wasn't invited. Nobody mentioned him.
Even outside of work, the incidents kept stacking up. In 2018, he confronted a driver on a New York freeway, was kicked to the ground, and had to explain to police that he used to be famous. The kid didn't recognize him.
Asked in 2022 about his reputation, Chase gave the same response he's always given. "I don't give a crap. I am who I am."
Maybe that's the point. It's not that everyone suddenly turned on Chevy Chase. It's that they finally stopped making excuses.