There’s also the matter of how Harmon interacted with higher-ups, both at Sony and NBC. Harmon wrote on his blog this weekend that Greenblatt “never called me once in the entire duration of his employment at NBC. He didn’t call me to say he was starting to work there, he didn’t call me to say I was no longer working there and he definitely didn’t call to ask if I was going to be involved.†Leaving aside the fact that it would’ve been Sony which contacted Harmon about his firing, not NBC, numerous network and show sources say that Greenblatt did more than simply call Harmon: He made at least one visit to the Community set during his tenure at NBC, and that during this trip, Greenblatt had a discussion with Harmon about the show. Two other sources note that Greenblatt interacted with Harmon during in-person powwows with the rest of the production team to discuss the show’s creative direction. Overall, Harmon was not known for relishing discussions with execs: Sometimes a writer or producer would have to physically bring him a phone with an exec on the line because he had ignored numerous messages.Not a great way to build loyalty from your bosses! But despite fears that Harmon may have built himself a reputation that will prevent him from running another show or helming a movie, the piece ends on a hopeful note:
Even before last week’s unpleasantness went down, Adult Swim announced it was developing a new show with Harmon. And Vulture has heard that Harmon’s agents have already been fielding numerous calls from other networks and even some film studios about taking meetings with Harmon. We’ve also corresponded with network development execs who’ve indicated that they’ve heard the “stories†about Harmon and aren’t deterred: They want to talk about getting into business with him. Cool. Coolcoolcool.
Over at Vulture, Josef Adalian dives deep into the whole Harmon/Community brouhaha, talking to folks from the show and the industry in general to really break down what happened, why, and what tomorrow will bring for the Greendale Seven. The entire piece is excellent and well worth reading! Included are some more specific details about Harmon’s rough relationship with network suits:Fingers crossed!