Steve Carell starred on The Office, but he won’t come back for the upcoming spin-off show. He told The Hollywood Reporter that he’s excited about the show and thinks the idea for it is great, but his character, Michael Scott, has no place in that world.
“I will be watching but I will not be showing up. That is off the cards. It’s just a new thing. There is really no reason for my character to show up in something like that. I’m excited about it. It sounds like a great conceit. I love the idea,” he said.
Carell went on to say that one of the leads, Domhnall Gleeson, is an “excellent actor and a super nice guy.” Carell and Gleeson worked together on the miniseries The Patient. Overall, Carell said he believes the new version of The Office will “be great.”
Carell saying this is not altogether surprising, as Michael Scott is an iconic TV character that already has his time in the sun. That being said, the new follow-up series takes place within the same universe, which led some to hope or theorize that characters from the show might appear on it. And that could still happen, albeit with characters other than Michael Scott.
Carell left The Office after Season 7, though he did return in the finale to deliver one more “that’s what she said” joke.
The new version of The Office was created by The Office’s Greg Daniels and Nathan For You’s Michael Koman. The show, which has already been ordered to series at Peacock, follows the story of a dying historic midwestern newspaper and the publisher trying to revive it with unpaid reporters.
Gleeson and The White Lotus star Sabrina Impacciatore are playing the lead roles, though details about their characters have yet to be revealed.
The new series doesn’t have an official name yet, and the rest of the ensemble cast will presumably be announced in due course. The show begins filming in July.