Oh my God! Okay, it’s happening. Everybody stay calm! In a world where most new sitcoms these days feel like old sitcoms, it was only a matter of time before The Office got mined for parts. The Office itself was already an Americanized version of a successful U.K. sitcom of the same name, so why not just add to the universe, right? That’s what Peacock’s thinking. The new version is very much not a reboot of that old show and, in fact, sounds entirely different from the U.S. and the U.K. versions of The Office in just about every way, from the cast to the setting to the stakes. So what do we know about this mostly entirely new sitcom?
How is this connected to The Office?
The tenuous connection to the original beloved sitcom is that the show is shot by the “documentary crew” that followed the Scranton Dunder Mifflin. It’s also created by original The Office (U.S.) creator Greg Daniels with Nathan for You’s Michael Koman. Daniels clarified to The Wrap that he does not consider this new take to be a reboot. Instead, he likened it to the way that The Mandalorian fits into the Star Wars universe. “Something like the notion of this documentary crew doing a documentary about a different subject. That, I think, could be intriguing and creative,” he said. “But I don’t even know what you would call that.” Sounds like a spinoff to us!
What’s this thing about?
Rather than documenting the everyday life of office workers (which would be hard anyway because these days so many people are hybrid), the new show will focus on publishers attempting to revive a “dying historic Midwestern newspaper.” Well … there’s still paper involved!
Who’s in it?
Interestingly for a show about a midwestern newspaper, there have been no American cast members set. So far we only know the Italian actress Sabrina Impacciatore (The White Lotus) and Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson (Run) are onboard. Perhaps we can look forward to at least a couple cute cameos from former cast members? Jenna Fischer told People she hasn’t been approached yet. We say bring back Creed.
How can I watch?
The new sitcom, which is still untitled, was picked up by Peacock on May 8. “It’s been more than ten years since the final episode of The Office aired on NBC, and the acclaimed comedy series continues to gain popularity and build new generations of fans on Peacock,” President of NBCUniversal Entertainment Lisa Katz said in a statement. “In partnership with Universal Television and led by the creative team of Greg Daniels and Michael Koman, this new series set in the universe of Dunder Mifflin introduces a new cast of characters in a fresh setting ripe for comedic storytelling: a daily newspaper.” There have been no confirmed dates for production or release yet. Hold out hope that the new spinoff will be like the old one in one major way — 24-episode seasons.
This post has been updated.
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