When NBC revealed this would be the final season of "The Office," hopes were high that Steve Carell would return to the lead role of manager Michael Scott. But NBC tossed cold water on those hopes over the weekend. "I'm hopeful but I don't think he will be back," said NBC entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt at the network's Television...
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Steve Carrel
When NBC revealed this would be the final season of "The Office," hopes were high that Steve Carell would return to the lead role of manager Michael Scott.
But NBC tossed cold water on those hopes over the weekend.
"I'm hopeful but I don't think he will be back," said NBC entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt at the network's Television Critics Association winter press tour in Pasadena, Calif., on Sunday.
Greenblatt told reporters, "He left in the way that he wanted that character to leave, and I think he and (producer Greg Daniels) have talked about it and I don't think he'll be back. There's maybe a little Hail Mary pass on a cameo, but I think the decision is that it'll go out without him rather than compromising his exit."
Several "Office" cast members had told E! Channel in recent weeks their schedules were being adjusted in attempt to bring Carell back before the show goes off the air.
Carell left the show in 2011 to devote more time to his family and movie career.
"The Office" debuted in March 2005, receiving solid critical reviews, but lackluster ratings. NBC stuck with the series, which became the centerpiece of its a two-hour block of Thursday sitcoms.
Adapted from the original, British series of the same name starring Ricky Gervais, NBC's "The Office" was transplanted to Scranton, Penn., home to a regional office of the Dunder Mifflin paper company.
