Fans of The Office, rejoice: Dunder Mifflin Paper Company could be back in business.
TVLine broke the news on Monday that NBC plans to revive the Emmy-winning workplace comedy for the 2018-2019 season. Returning to Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton, Pennsylvania branch, the reboot would feature some of the cast from the series’ initial run—excluding Steve Carell, who played the company’s faithful regional manager, Michael Scott. Carrell starred on The Office for the first seven of its nine total seasons, bowing out in 2011 and reprising his role for the series finale in 2013.
The reboot announcement follows NBC’s successful relaunch of Will & Grace, which has already been approved for a second season. In August, NBC president Bob Greenblatt told Deadline he’d expressed interest in reviving The Office, as well as 30 Rock, The West Wing, and ER.
“We often talk about The Office, I’ve talked to [show developer] Greg [Daniels] four times over the past few years. It’s always, ‘Maybe someday but not now’,” Greenblatt said. “There is certainly an open invitation but we don’t have anything happening right now. If he wants to do it, I would do it.”
Fans can’t say they were totally blindsided by the news. In January, Carell trolled fans by tweeting, “Breaking News: ‘The Office’ returning to NBC.” He later amended his statement as the Internet effectively burst into flames: “Wait, sorry. I meant ‘Will and Grace’ (Typo).”
This time around, the news seems legitimate, and even without Carell, viewers should find plenty to love about The Office’s return to primetime.
H/T TV Line