‘The Office’ Turned Into a “Struggle” After Steve Carell Exit, Star Reveals
Steve Carell’s Michael Scott was a pure chaos, but he brought in an even bigger chaos for his colleagues when he left The Office — according to the show’s other big star Rainn Wilson.
We know how hard it was for Dwight Schrute to go on without Michael Scott, but we probably had no idea about what it was like for Rainn Wilson and co to continue The Office without its leading actor Steve Carell.
The latter quit the hit sitcom after season 7, pursuing new heights in the comedy in both movies and TV shows, which eventually led to The Office surviving two more seasons without Carell’s Michael Scott and wrapping the story up entirely.
Even though it’s pretty clear that the series was no longer the same without its leading man, things were actually much more complicated and challenging for both production team and leading cast than it seemed to be.
Rainn Wilson Says ‘The Office’ Got “a Little Bit Chaotic” After Steve Carell Left
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Despite the show being able to continue with the same storyline even without its leading star, Dwight’s actor Rainn Wilson admitted the entire crew had lost direction at some point.
“When Steve left, then it was a little bit chaotic of trying to figure out the tone of the show and who’s the lead and, how are we telling these stories without, you know, the comic engine of the show, which is Michael Scott, and without one of the greatest comic actors in American history at the center of our show. That was also a struggle”, the actor revealed during a talk on the “Good Guys” podcast.
However, Wilson still highlighted that Carell’s decision to quit the show after so many years wasn’t really surprising, considering that at the time he had already gained a status of a potential comedy legend and thus was ready to move on to other bigger projects.
“We knew it was coming for a long time”, Wilson added.
Steve Carell Left ‘The Office’ Because It Was Time for Other Characters to “Step to the Forefront”
It seems like there weren’t only bigger career goals involved when it came to the actor’s decision to step away from The Office — in his own words, Carell also felt like the show just couldn’t go on focusing solely on Michael Scott’s life.
“It was time for other characters to step to the forefront and other storylines to be pursued. I think it was the right… the timing was right, I think for everybody but simultaneously there’s just a sense of joy for me that we had experienced all of this and we were getting… I was getting a chance to take a lap with everybody”, Carell said during a conversation with co-stars Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey on their “Office Ladies” podcast back in 2024.
