The Office‘s upcoming reboot will need to overcome an issue that the US version kept encountering linked to the character of Michael Scott. When ranking The Office‘s nine seasons, many often agree that the final two were the show’s weakest. The leading contributing factor in this viewpoint is that Steve Carell left the show as Michael Scott, despite being the figurehead of The Office‘s cast for six years and seven seasons.
Cast exits from The Office were not uncommon, but Carell’s was undoubtedly the most consequential. The departure of Michael caused a turning point in the show, with The Office proving to struggle to replace him. All of this brings to mind the impending reboot/revival of The Office, which has recently been confirmed to be in development. If the reboot of The Office is to succeed, it needs to overcome an issue that was caused by Michael’s departure from the original show.
The Office Struggled To Focus On Characters Other Than Michael Scott
Michael’s Departure Harmed The Show
As alluded to with the mention of Michael’s departure being a turning point for the show, The Office struggled when attempting to give other characters this kind of focus. After Michael left, several big actors and characters were introduced to the show as the “successor” to Carell’s character and the new manager of Dunder Mifflin Scranton. However, the sad reality is that none of these characters managed to successfully replace Michael, leaving the show in a state of limbo for its final two seasons.
The first replacement for Michael was Will Ferrell’s Deangelo Vickers, whom audiences and the other characters alike did not warm to. Then there was James Spader’s Robert California, Catherine Tate’s Nellie Bertram, and even series regular Andy Bernard, played by Ed Helms, to name a few. While some of these characters worked better than others as The Office‘s central character, the absence of Michael Scott was never truly washed away. Even someone like Idris Elba’s Charles Miner, who was introduced before Michael left, only proved just how vital the latter was to The Office‘s infrastructure.
The Office’s Reboot Needs To Maintain Having One Central Character
A Linchpin Character Seems A Necessity For The Office
All of this is to say that The Office‘s reboot needs to avoid this common Michael Scott mistake, that is trying to replace him. Whoever becomes the Michael Scott of The Office‘s next iteration needs to be just as effective as he was and stay on for the show’s entire runtime as the central character. If The Office‘s reboot manages to succeed in this regard, it could prove to be more consistent than its predecessor.
The UK version of The Office proved how important a central character was, with Ricky Gervais’ David Brent being just as vital as Michael Scott.
This is not to say that other characters cannot have a big focus, though. After all, some of The Office‘s best characters were the likes of Jim, Pam, and Dwight. Therefore, The Office can focus on an ensemble just as the US version did, but none can deny that it will need a central figure like Michael Scott to succeed. If The Office‘s reboot manages to keep its figurehead consistent, it may just avoid the mistakes made with lead characters in the most popular version of the show.
