Office Gets Syndie Deal
Emmy® and Golden Globe®-Winning Sitcom The Office to Join TBS Line-Up
Repurposed on TBS Beginning in Fall 2007
One of the funniest workplaces in television history is coming to TBS when the Emmy® and Golden Globe®-winning series THE OFFICE joins the network’s line-up in Fall 2007, according to an announcement today by Ken Schwab, senior vice president of programming for TBS and sister network TNT. TBS’s deal for the series, which stars Steve Carrell (Evan Almighty, The 40-Year-Old Virgin), includes non-exclusive broadband streaming, on-demand and wireless rights to run concurrent with the off-network telecast rights, which will begin in Fall 2009. Jonathan Katz, senior vice president of program planning and acquisitions for Turner Entertainment Group, negotiated the deal on behalf of Turner Broadcasting with Frances Manfredi, senior vice president/general sales manager, Cable & Non-Theatrical Sales, NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution.
“THE OFFICE is not only a top-notch sitcom, but also one of the most relatable comedies on television,” said Schwab. “Anyone who has ever worked for a completely clueless boss, had an inner-office romance or simply worked among an odd assortment of coworkers will immediately get the offbeat humor in this series. It’s a wonderful addition to our line-up, and we’re thrilled to bring it to our audience of comedy lovers.”
The 2006 Emmy winner for Outstanding Comedy Series, THE OFFICE is a documentary-style look into the humorous and sometimes poignant foolishness that plagues the 9-to-5 world. It delves into the lives of the workers at Dunder Mifflin paper supply company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Regional manager Michael Scott (Golden Globe winner and Emmy nominee Carell) is a single, middle-aged man who is the boastful tour guide for the documentary. With unshaken enthusiasm, he believes he is the office funnyman, a fountain of business wisdom and his employees’ cool friend. He has no clue that his employees tolerate his inappropriate behavior only because he signs their paychecks.
Michael’s staff includes Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer, Slither), the friendly office receptionist who bears the brunt of his routines; Jim Halpert (John Krasinski, Jarhead, Kinsey), a likable sales rep with a good sense of humor who should have found a better job years ago; Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson, Six Feet Under), the arrogant assistant to the regional manager; and Ryan Howard (B.J. Novak, Punk’d), a young, smart, self-possessed temp, who quickly figures out the real office politics.
In addition to its 2006 Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series and Golden Globe for lead Carrell, THE OFFICE has earned four Emmy nominations, a Screen Actors Guild Award® for Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series, two Television Critics Association Awards and two Writers Guild of America Awards. THE OFFICE, from Reveille and Universal Media Studio, is executive-produced by Ben Silverman; Greg Daniels, who developed the series for American audiences; Ricky Gervais, who starred in the British version of the series; Stephen Merchant; and Howard Klein.
