The Office remains one of the most beloved and most-streamed TV shows in any given year, even if it was topped by Suits in 2023, and there’s a wide swath of the fandom that would love to return to the hallowed halls of Dunder Mifflin to reunite with that particular crew. But creator Greg Daniels has other ideas in mind for a new show set in The Office-verse, and that idea has moved forward in a pretty big way that could help make the mockumentary approach feel even more organic and cringe-worthy.
Rather than going at it alone, or by teaming up with the UK Office creators Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, Greg Daniels has reached outside the franchise and added Nathan For You co-creator Michael Koman reportedly in a co-creator capacity, according to Variety. Meaning he would presumably have as much of a creative pull as Daniels, meaning he could bring The Office into the fiction-straddling waters that Nathan for You so deftly waded through.
For those unaware, Nathan for You ran for four seasons on Comedy Central from 2013-2017, and featured comedian and deadpan artiste Nathan Fielder as a bizarro version of himself posing as a business school graduate who's heavily invested in bringing bonkers business ideas to life, sometimes with real-world ramifications (such as Dumb Starbucks). But instead of being a mean-spirited prank show or akin to Daily Show interviews, the joke is always on Fielder as he seemingly authentically mucks things up with his hyperbolic concepts.
Ideally, Greg Daniels and Michael Koman will develop an idea that's so genius that Fielder himself decides to take on the starring role. The actor was pitch-perfect in Showtime's 2023 fever dream The Curse, which he co-created with Benny Safdie, as one half of a burgeoning couple of home renovation TV hosts whose marriage takes unexpected turns after he believes he's been cursed by a young girl. (Here's how to watch.)
Fielder is so good at playing things straight and serious, it could bring the show's vibe closer to the U.K. source, and away from the sheer cartoonishness of the U.S. version's later seasons. Granted, that show-within-a-show experience, combined with his past work on NfY, may make him more wary about joining a show like The Office, but I can dream.
To be sure, this particular Office offshoot is still just an in-development idea being kicked around at NBCUniversal, and hasn't yet been ordered to series or anything along those lines. That said, I imagine only the worst idea in the known universe would be turned down for a new Office project, so I'm optimistic that more big announcements are coming down the line now that this creative duo is reportedly making magic together. (And also hopefully causing mass destruction around the office together as well.)
While waiting for more news, The Office U.S is available to stream with a Peacock subscription.
