Steve Carell Says ‘The Office’ Wouldn’t ‘Fly’ Today: ‘The Climate’s Different’

“Beautiful Boy” star doesn’t know how audiences would react to Michael Scott if introduced today

The Office Steve Carell
NBC

One star of “The Office” doesn’t think bringing back the sitcom is such a good idea in today’s climate.

Steve Carell said in an interview with Esquire that he’s not sure how the inappropriate boss Michael Scott character from “The Office” would “fly” in the present day.

“There’s been a resurgence in interest in the show, and talk about bringing it back,” he said while noting that more viewers are discovering the comedy now that it’s on Netflix. “But apart from the fact that I just don’t think that’s a good idea, it might be impossible to do that show today and have people accept it the way it was accepted 10 years ago.”

The “Beautiful Boy” actor said that there’s a heightened awareness when it comes to inappropriate behavior in the workplace now than there was when “The Office” first aired and that “the climate’s different.”

“I mean, the whole idea of that character, Michael Scott, so much of it was predicated on inappropriate behavior,” Carell said. “I mean, he’s certainly not a model boss. A lot of what is depicted on that show is completely wrong-minded. That’s the point, you know? But I just don’t know how that would fly now. There’s a very high awareness of offensive things today — which is good, for sure. But at the same time, when you take a character like that too literally, it doesn’t really work.”

Other “Office” alums, however, said they would be happy to participate in a reboot of the NBC sitcom. Stars John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer have both said they’d be down to reprise their roles of Jim and Pam.

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