Michael Scott holding a Dundie award in The Office
The Office casting director Allison Jones reveals that the show's network, NBC, originally considered two different Oscar-nominated actors for the role of Michael Scott. Based on the original British mockumentary created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the American version starred Steve Carell as David Brent-lite Michael Scott and followed the employees of fictional Pennsylvania paper merchants Dunder Mifflin.
"I remember vividly the first meeting we had with the network when had a list of names and they were like, 'Let's try Philip Seymour Hoffman. And then, you know, let's go for Paul Giamatti or whatever.' Nobody did TV. Comedy was the bottom of the barrel. This was the first time other than Freaks and Geeks , I had the opportunity to get real people who didn't have to be, you know, vaudeville funny or sitcom funny, which is a very difficult thing to be.
✕ Remove Ads What This Reveal Means For How The Office Could Have Been The Show Might Have Looked Very Different With A Big Star In The Lead Close The Office eventually became one of the most iconic and popular shows on American television and is widely regarded as one of the strongest remakes in TV history, but the series could have been a lot different. Much like its British counterpart, one of the reasons the show worked so well is because of the lack of big stars in the key roles.
Had NBC gotten their way, the show's dynamic would certainly have been different, and the focus would have shifted more onto Michael's character, with a household name in the role. This would likely have been to the detriment of many of the supporting characters, whose interesting interactions and interpersonal conflicts are a big part of what made the show such a success.
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