Rolling into this long 4th of July weekend, the comedy world received some unexpected news late Friday afternoon: creator and star of NBC sitcom The Carmichael Show, Jerrod Carmichael, had announced he was leaving the series. Within hours, the network issued a statement confirming Carmichael's departure, and announcing that -- without its lead -- The Carmichael Show was officially cancelled, after just under three seasons on air.
Late Friday, Carmichael released a statement to entertainment news site Deadline:
“For three seasons (okay 2.5), I got to make a show that I love with my friends,” he said. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was 13. Now, I’m excited to go make other things that I love. Thank you to every person who worked on or watched The Carmichael Show.“
Shortly after, 20th Century Television presidents Jonnie David and Howard Kurtzman issued an official statement, which was worded fairly positively given the situation:
"The Carmichael Show was such a wonderful show that we choose to focus today not on its loss but on the three incredible seasons we had the pleasure to produce. We are thankful to the brilliant Jerrod Carmichael and his talented cast, and to showrunner Danielle Sanchez-Witzel, our fantastic writers and devoted production team. It’s a rarity that a comedy series tackles the social and political issues of the day in such a clever and hilariously funny way. This show was special, and we will miss it."
Similarly, NBC Entertainment Chairman Bob Greenblatt and President Salke said:
“We are enormously proud of The Carmichael Show and Jerrod’s talent and vision to do a classic family sitcom that also taps into issues and relevant stories from the real world. We thank and salute the cast, crew, and producers — and especially Jerrod — for three critically acclaimed seasons.”
Carmichael's decision to exit the show came at a very curious time: last week, The Carmichael Show finally aired a controversial episode about a mass shooting, one that had been slated to run earlier this month, but -- due to the original air date landing on the same day as a mass shooting in Alexandria, Virginia -- NBC decided to postpone.
Last week's episode certainly wasn't the show's first controversial half hour -- since its 2015 premiere, The Carmichael Show has aired episodes the introduced thoughtful conversations on topics like Bill Cosby and "the N-word." Throughout, star Carmichael -- an accomplished and genuinely affable stand-up comedian -- has kept the tone of the show level-headed and informed, as well as entertaining, which is a difficult balance to strike but one he pulled of with seeming ease.
While it's still unclear exactly why Carmichael chose to exit the show, odds are that all the back-and-forth with the network over what can and can't be said proved a bit too much for the show and its staff; also, its entirely possible that the stand-up misses the road, and would like to focus more on his live performances.
Whatever comes next, one thing's for sure: Carmichael's friends who worked on the show alongside him, like Willie Hunter (pictured above) and Lil Rel Howery (who made waves earlier this year in hit horror film Get Out), certainly don't hold the cancellation against him. Today, news site ComedyHype.com released an open letter from Lil Rel, full of praise for his pal and the work they produced together:
"First of all I want to start out by saying how proud I am of Jerrod Carmichael… This amazing young talented black man is one the greatest bosses I’ve ever had, besides being one of my closest friends he’s one of the people I respect more than anything… Thanks for letting me part of your dream that made my dream come true… Thank you for always staying true to yourself and your bold and honest voice… Loretta and David it was a dream come true to work with such legends I still pinch myself when I think about who I got to learn from and act with on screen… You guys taught me a lot about being professional and comedic timing… You guys deserve way more accolades then what you have already got. 2 bonifide legends from Broadway to Hollywood… Amber and Tiff I love y’all so much and both of y’all are so talented… Amber I love your heart and all your amazing gifts including that voice… I gained a best friend in an already amazing actress… Tiffany you know what it is I’m so proud of you to see your rise in your career is simply amazing you’re a superstar who went thru so much but overcame everything… You’ve been one of my best friends the last 10 years and we did that… We still got more to do but everything we talked about at your south central crib or in your little geo metro we did that… Lastly to the amazing audience that watched our show thank you so so much for showing so much love online, at my shows and just on the streets… Please don’t stop watching this season… We did an amazing season of television… Our writers, producers and amazing show runner Danielle, to many people to name but thank you for being patient with me… To Gerry Cohen our director thank you for believing in me man… I got better and better because of you sir… All and all thanks for letting me be Bobby Carmichael… Even though things don’t always go his way lol he has a heart of gold and that’s what made him such a loveable guy to play…. Don’t be sad for us just appreciate what we did and support the tv shows, specials and movies we do in the future… Sorry for the long post but had a connecting flight lol and felt like saying all this… Keep Watching!!! ✌🏿"