Nick Offerman On Dan Harmon's 'Community' Controversy: 'It Was Crazy, But Not Surprising'

Nick Offerman, "Parks and Recreation's" Ron Swanson, wasn't surprised Dan Harmon was fired from "Community," he told GQ.

"It was crazy, but not surprising. Dan has been notoriously difficult with NBC. And then he had that really public Chevy Chase feud," Offerman explained. "I think Dan is brilliant, but we all kind of hung our heads and thought, 'That's no way for a boss to behave.'"

Many "Community" stars had strong reactions to Harmon's departure, including a lot of gratitude for his work on the show. "We all texted him our congratulations [on his win]," Gillian Jacobs, who plays Britta, told Vulture. "We're all very grateful to him, because he really changed our lives and our careers, so we have an infinite amount of gratitude towards him and his beautiful writing and his ambition."

Jacobs also tweeted her appreciation of Harmon after news of his firing. "I'm so grateful to @danharmon for my role, the show and everything else. Thank you, Dan. Thank you," she wrote in May. "Community" star Joel McHale also tweeted, "@danharmon you are a true genius. You gave me the role of a lifetime & three of the best years of my life. Buying #Prototype2 today."

Alison Brie, who plays Annie, told EW that Season 4 of "Community" should be interesting without Harmon. "There’s no question that the show will be different," she said. "Dan Harmon was so instrumental in everything that went on with the show, and was the cause of most of the relentless innovation ... Hopefully we’ll maintain the essence of what makes this show great," Brie said.

Harmon's firing wasn't the only nail-biter when it came to NBC's 2012-2013 season, due to the uncertainty around "Parks and Recreation's" future. "The Thursday and Friday before the upfronts [the May event where the networks reveal their fall shows to advertisers], we still weren't hearing if the show had been picked up, and we were nervous," Offerman told GQ. "Then suddenly there were rumors, and for the first time NBC didn't invite the cast to the upfronts. We were, like, what's going on!"

"Parks and Recreation" was renewed for another season. Offerman and the rest of the cast will be returning Thursday, Sept. 20 at 9:30 pm. ET on NBC.

Read more of Nick Offerman's GQ interview here to find out about his favorite Ron Swanson line, what it was like to write a "Parks and Recreation" episode and more.

For more of NBC's fall premiere dates, click here.