Ricky Gervais "very excited" for The Office remake with female lead
The Ricky Gervais series is getting its 13th remake, with filming set to commence in June.
Ricky Gervais, co-creator of The Office, has said he is "very excited" about the upcoming Australian remake which has just been announced.
The remake will be an eight-part series which will begin filming in June and land on Amazon Prime Video in the UK in 2024. It will star stand-up comedian Felicity Ward as Hannah Howard, the lacking manager of packaging company Flinley Craddick.
Gervais said of the spin-off in a statement: "I’m very excited about Australia remaking my little show from the turn of the century. Office politics have changed a bit in 20 years, so can’t wait to see how they navigate a modern-day David Brent."
Gervais's David Brent has seen many iterations since the UK Office aired in 2001, perhaps most notably in the shape of Steve Carell's Michael Scott for the US version of the comedy. The Australian series will be the first of 13 remakes to feature a female lead.
It certainly sounds like the Australian version will introduce a few modern day elements, with the Prime Video announcement teasing that Howard will "go into survival mode" when she finds out her branch is closing down, with all the staff set to be working from home instead.
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This leads her to make "promises she can’t keep in order to keep her ‘work family’ together".
Senior development executive at Prime Video Australia, Sarah Christie, said of the series: "We are thrilled to be bringing one of the biggest comedy franchises ever made to Prime Video customers in Australia and around the world.
"It is an honour to continue the international comedy legacy of The Office locally while introducing new, quintessentially Australian characters. We can’t wait for audiences to meet Hannah Howard, the first female boss The Office format has explored."
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France, Canada, Sweden, Chile, India, the Middle East and Poland are just some of the countries that have remade the show.
The Australian Office will air on Amazon Prime Video in the UK in 2024 – you can sign up now for a free 30-day Prime Video trial.
If you’re looking for something else to watch in the meantime, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide, or visit our dedicated Comedy hub.
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