Gervais praises NBC remake

Fears that the American remake of The Office isn’t up to scratch have been dismissed – by Ricky Gervais.

Rumours have been rife in the US television industry that the NBC network shelved the show after the pilot proved a disappointment.

And newspapers have reported that test audiences used to a gag every 15 seconds found the more low-key comedy ‘too depressing’.

But six shows have been made, ready for broadcast from mid-February. And Gervais reckons they’re pretty good.

“I’ve seen it, and they haven’t compromised,” he tells today’s Sunday Times. “It’s slightly different, a smidgen broader, but not much.

“The danger is that on NBC, it won’t get the viewers they need; but rounds of applause for being true to it.”

However, commissioning just six episodes does indicate a certain caution by NBC, as American sitcoms normally run for much longer seasons.

Gervais, who is acting as a consultant on the show, but with no direct say in how it turns out, admits: “The stakes are so much higher. If it doesn’t get a 10 per cent audience on the first night, they’ll panic.”

“The reason the rumour it was cancelled went round is that it got the lowest ever score on the NBC focus group. That’s a coincidence. It got the lowest ever on BBC2 as well. Joint bottom with women’s bowls.”

King Of The Hill creator Greg Daniels is masterminding the US remakes, which star The Daily Show’s Steve Carrell as David Brent.

Published: 14 Nov 2004