KUSA - In the early seasons, many thought "The Office" would cease to exist without Steve Carell's character, Michael Scott.
The lousy, often crude boss of Dunder-Mifflin, known best for his "That's what she said" references, is a quintessential part of the show's dynamic. But strangely enough, when Carell announced his departure from the show prior to the show's 2010 season, there wasn't the talk many anticipated about the show ending. Instead, there was chatter from the show's staff about who would be the next boss.
The show must go on. Perhaps it's a testament to the show's dynamic cast, which over the course of the show's seven seasons have developed into a blend of comedic awkwardness all by themselves. Sometimes, it's even funnier to see them interact without Carell's bizarre character.
However, that's not to say Carell won't be missed, according to Angela Kinsey, who plays the uptight Angela Martin on the show.
"There [are] 16 of us, and I love Steve," Kinsey said. "He's become such a good friend, so this parting is very bittersweet. But there's also this real buzz on the set. There's this real energy of like, 'What is going to happen?' You're seeing it in these episodes, a real sense that we are all real excited. I think life after Michael Scott could be just as interesting to see."
There have been rumors about movie star Harvey Keitel taking the reins away from Steve Carell, who has become quite a movie star himself. But so far, the writers and producers of the show aren't saying a peep about what's ahead. It has the whole cast and crew buzzing.
"I think there is that great suspense," said Ellie Kemper, who plays Erin Hannon on the show. "The deep bench, I think, is very valuable, and it's exciting! It's very bittersweet and exciting."
The show, which is well known for its outrageous and hilarious holiday episodes, will be airing a few variations of its Halloween inspired storylines. A 'webisode' on
www.nbc.com will feature the character Ryan as an attempted master horror filmmaker who fails to really come through on his ambitions.
A different episode, airing on NBC, will be set around a monetary prize. Seeing as money has always been tight in the paper business, the characters go crazy with wildly ridiculous costumes as a way of pushing up their paycheck a bit.
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