- Rainn Wilson feels his famous sitcom The Office is too “politically incorrect” to be made today.
- The actor said that a lot of antics of Steve Carrell’s Michael and his own character Dwight would not be well received today.
- A spinoff of The Office, The Paper, has been renewed for another season
The Office remains a favourite of millions across the world even years after its final episode aired. However, Rainn Wilson, who played the role of Dwight Schrute in the sitcom, feels that the show cannot be made today.
In a chat with Fox News Digital, Wilson said that The Office would be “too hard” to make today, explaining how “politically incorrect” it was.
The actor cited Steve Carrell, who played the lead role of Michael, and his own character Dwight as having no “self-awareness”. He explained that their antics would not be well received today.
"We milked that for a lot of great, really inappropriate stuff," Wilson said about the show, adding, "But even with the fact that painting that character as just an idiot, I don't think you could get away with it today."
The Office, which aired on NBC from 2005 to 2013, followed the employees of a paper company and their struggles at work. Much of the humour in the first few seasons focused on the company's boss, Michael Scott doing and saying something offensive that would make the others uncomfortable.
This is not the first time that Rainn Wilson has talked about how the humour of The Office cannot be replicated today. Appearing at The Last Laugh podcast in September, the actor said that the show could be “jaw-droppingly” offensive, and that if it was made today, it would be a “very, very different” sitcom.
Wilson added that The Office was a “show based around clueless, insensitive, racist, sexist people that kind of mirrors the United States in a lot of ways. You want to encourage it, because it's funny as hell and it also kind of skewers a particular American sensibility. But it definitely goes pretty far if you dig deep.”
While Rainn Wilson has spoken up about how The Office would be impossible to recreate, NBC may feel differently.
The company, which owns Peacock, recently renewed The Paper, a spinoff of The Office, for a second season. The sitcom follows the day-to-day happenings at a struggling Midwestern newspaper.
The Paper features Tim Key, Ramona Young, Alex Edelman, Chelsea Frei, Melvin Gregg, Domhnall Gleeson, Sabrina Impacciatore, Gbemisola Ikumelo and Oscar Nuñez. The second season will premiere later this year.
