Ricky Gervais explains why he turned down Steve Carell’s Office US function
Ricky Gervais has said that he turned down being cast as Michael Scott in the US series of The Office because he didn’t want to move to America.
Speaking to The Independent for the 20th anniversary of the much-loved American version of The Office, Gervais, who co-created the original 2001 British series with Stephen Merchant, reflected on the process of transforming the Slough-based workplace mockumentary into a hit American sitcom.
When the show was picked up for American TV and the roles were being cast, Gervais – who played middle manager David Brent in the original series – was asked by the show’s producer Ben Silverman if he wanted to play the US equivalent of Brent, Michael Scott.
Explaining his decision, Gervais said: “Before we cast, [Silverman] called me and said ‘Why don’t you play Michael Scott?’ I said, ‘That is mental. It makes no sense at all.’”
“Why would I do it? The reason The Office resonated was because it was made in England for English people. It’s got to be made by Americans for Americans.”
The real reason he declined, however, was because he didn’t want to move to America to shoot the series across seven years, working long hours five days a week.
“I’d have been crying after the first 22 episodes, asking Dwight [Rainn Wilson] to murder me,” he joked.
The role eventually went to The Daily Show’s Steve Carell, but many others were in the running.
“Bob Odenkirk would’ve been brilliant,” Merchant told The Independent. “It’s interesting. Initially, he didn’t seem to have the immediate warmth that Carell [had], or certainly not then. Yet, when you’ve seen him in things like Better Call Saul, it’s all there. It’s hard to know.”
“It would’ve been equally good but sometimes when you’re casting, you can feel when it’s the right person.”
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Carell’s performance as manager Michael Scott was a huge success and resulted in him receiving six Emmy Award nominations during the six years that The Office US aired.
Gervais divulged that when Carell was preparing to play the role, he couldn’t watch episodes of the UK show out of fear of copying Gervais’s iconic David Brent performance.
“When Steve got the job he said, ‘I have to stop watching it so I don’t do an impression of you,’” Gervais said. “Because once you see Brent’s tics, they’re irresistible – looking awkward, saying nothing and looking at the camera.”
Merchant added that Carrell was “cautious” about not trying to replicate Gervais’s character.
“The more he got into the role, the more the shadow of Ricky’s performance disappeared. By the second series, he’d got into a groove of his own and was able to inhabit the character in the way Ricky had,” said Merchant.
Gervais also admitted that many presumed the US series would be “hated” due to the poor track record for British TV being rebooted for American audiences at the time.
“All of the people who knew The Office, loved The Office, and they were the industry. People were assuming [the remake] was going to be hated.”
“I’d seen 30 years of every single remake failing,” said Gervais. “Some were pulled after the first episode, because advertising was so important. They’d just kill it. [But] I thought ‘Why not?’ I’ve got nothing to lose, nothing to beat. It’ll be fun.’”
The Office US was such a success that Gervais reckons “most Americans don’t know about the English show”.
“There’s our version and this brilliant cover version,” he said.
Merchant added that he’s proud of both versions, which “share many of the same elements but they’re both different”.
“I’m extremely proud of the American one and if I’m flicking through TV and it’s on, I’ll watch it as a fan,” he said. “I can see it from a distance and enjoy it like anyone else.”
