When Jack Donaghy kicked in the door of his new office in the very first episode of 30 Rock, proudly proclaiming that his predecessor was dead and that he was now in charge of NBC and, by extension, Liz Lemon’s life, we knew that the show had just begun. For five years, the hypercapitalist superhuman that is Jack Donaghy has been one of the best parts of the often spectacular sitcom 30 Rock, courtesy of the excellence that is Alec Baldwin. Since we met him, we’ve seen Jack warm up to Liz (Tina Fey), open his heart to love enough to take a wife (Elizabeth Banks) and father an infant child (unknown baby actress). But as we’ve heard time and again, Jack’s time on 30 Rock coming to an end.
Badlwin spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the imminent change, admitting that he’s considering leaving 30 Rock after this season. Said Baldwin, “I wouldn’t want to prevent them from having another year, because they’re all my friends and they’ve been good to me. Maybe I would do a piece of the year. But I really do want to move on to other things.”
Baldwin’s interests for the future are diverse. He wishes to pursue a larger sum of movies; he’s starting a public radio interview show beginning Oct. 24; and, most interestingly, he’s considering running for political office. But before he makes the shift to politics, he needs to put the comedic side of his life behind him. Baldwin stated, “The jokes have to stop, everything has to be on the record,” explaining that there’s a “difference between going to Jon Stewart and Jim Lehrer.”
Despite his interest in moving on from the series that revived his fame, Baldwin did express a great deal of gratitude for the show and for his lifestyle in general. Personally, I wouldn’t want to see a 30 Rock without Jack Donaghy. Perhaps this is a hint that Liz Lemon needs to either finally “have it all,” or become content with only “having it somewhat.”
Source: EW
