Community: Why Star-Burns Faked His Death
Star-Burns memorably faked his death in Community season 3 due to Dino Stamatopoulos’ preferred role on the series. Here’s how the situation changed.
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Star-Burns notably faked his death in Community season 3, and the decision stemmed from a request by the actor. The character, whose real name was Alex Osbourne, was played by Dino Stamatopoulos. Aside from directly appearing on-screen, Stamatopoulos worked heavily behind the camera, serving as a writer and producer on the comedy series developed by Dan Harmon.
Star-Burns was a recurring character in Community, appearing as a middle-aged student at Greendale Community College who often encountered the study group at the center of the series. His nickname came from his signature star-shaped sideburns, which was just one of his many quirks. Star-Burns obtained immense popularity as a student, mainly because he was the campus cafeteria’s fry cook. This gave him a connection to the most sought-after menu item: chicken fingers. Star-Burns often attended Greendale’s campus-wide events, such as the various parties and games of Paintball Assassins.
In Community season 3, Star-Burns was presumed to have met his demise during “Basic Lupine Urology.” After implying he was selling drugs, the episode revealed Star-Burns’ car was rear-ended, causing the meth lab in his trunk to explode. The series pretended as if Star-Burns was killed, going as far as to hold a memorial service for the character. Stamatopoulos had been vocal about his time on the series, claiming that he didn’t enjoy acting or the make-up prep needed to get camera-ready. He preferred writing or producing, so he requested to be killed off from the show. Interestingly, Star-Burns was revealed to have faked his death in the season 3 finale in an attempt to create a new identity. This would have added another layer to the arc while allowing future cameo requests by Harmon, but those elements weren’t immediately explored.
Harmon was fired as Community’s showrunner ahead of season 4, and Stamatopoulos quit his involvement following NBC’s decision. When asked about his exit, Stamatopoulos revealed (via HuffPost): “I quit as soon as Dan Harmon was let go as the showrunner…I left in solidarity, which was a very brave thing to do.” He then reiterated the fact that he despised acting. The solidarity aspect shouldn’t have been a complete surprise since the pair co-founded Starburns Industries, which helped produce Community’s stop-motion episode, “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas.”
Seeing as Community season 4 didn’t garner the reception NBC had hoped, Harmon was brought back into the fold for season 5, and Stamatopoulos was one of the big names that also returned. Somehow, Harmon convinced his friend to get back in front of the camera, so Star-Burns’ faked death was fully explored. He revealed his survival to the study group as part of the “Ass Crack Bandit” investigation. In Community’s sixth and final season, Star-Burns was expelled from Greendale for participating in the banned Paintball Assassin game. More than likely, Stamatopoulos was ready to give up his role as Star-Burns a second time. If the series does come back in the form of a sequel movie, it’s unclear if Stamatopoulos would be up for another stint as Star-Burns.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/community-show-starburns-death-fake-killed-off-reason/