Steve Carell’s comedy is one that not many can compare to. He is both smart and witty when it comes to his jokes and no matter whether the lines are scripted or improvised, they are delivered with just as much dedication and love as any. His most prominent role is that of Michael Scott in The Office. He brought life to a character no one expected to and quickly became a fan favorite.
From the first season to the seventh, Michael Scott’s era had been one remembered by all. In that, many were saddened upon seeing his departure from the series. This was also seen in the decline of viewership as well as the quality of the following seasons. However, whenever anyone thinks of The Office, Michael Scott is among the first names to pop by.
Steve Carell Hinted at His Departure
Steve Carell had once very nonchalantly mentioned that his run in The Office could very well end after his contract was over. He wasn’t sure about whether or not he would renew it so he kept his doors open for either possibility. However, he was more leaning towards his departure, or so it seemed. Collider gave an insight into the matter and what really happened with Carell and the iconic series.
“He haphazardly mentioned, almost unconsciously, that it might be his last season. He didn’t plan on saying it out loud and he hadn’t decided anything. He was kind of thinking out loud, but he did it in an interview in public and it created news. Then what he said was the people connected to the show had no reaction to it. They didn’t call and say, ‘What? You wanna leave?’ He said he didn’t get any kind of response from them. When he realized he didn’t get any kind of response from them, he thought, ‘Oh, maybe they don’t really care if I leave. Maybe I should go do other things.'”
According to the sound designer and boom operator of The Office, Brian Wittle, he never meant to reveal the fact that he could be leaving. Things didn’t seem to go very well because Carell soon realized that they didn’t care whether he stayed or not. So he left.
Steve Carell Never Wanted to Leave the Office
Steve Carell seemed to be willing to come back to the series and even wanted to sign on for a couple more seasons. He even contacted the network and his agents were just as leaning towards it as him. However, it seemed that NBC had other plans. As per Collider, Kim Ferry also stated about how Carell was never interested in leaving the series.
“[Carell] didn’t want to leave the show. He had told the network that he was going to sign for another couple of years. He was willing to and his agent was willing to. But for some reason, they didn’t contact him. I don’t know if it was a game of chicken or what… He planned on staying on the show. He told his manager and his manager contacted them and said he’s willing to sign another contract for a couple years. So all of that was willing and ready and, on their side, honest. And the deadline came for when they were supposed to give him an offer and it passed and they didn’t make him an offer.”
Despite contacting the network, he never got a reply back. He was ready to come back and so were his agents, but it would seem as if the network wasn’t willing. They kept waiting, never to get a reply and so Carell decided to move on from The Office and pave a path for himself in Hollywood.
Source: Collider
