The Office grew into one of the most successful sitcoms of the 21st century, drawing on the premise of its acclaimed British source material to become a landmark TV show in its own right. Series developer Greg Daniels began by trying to make a like-for-like replica of Ricky Gervais’ original UK version, but one moment in the first episode of the American Office showed why this plan was doomed from the very start. Instead, the US version of the series needed to change things up with subtle shifts in tone, characterization, and storyline that better suited its actors and setting.

character in the US Office needed to be a little softer around the edges than Brent. The skin-crawling awkwardness found in most scenes of the British Office needed replacing with a slightly lighter touch, characterized by Michael’s buffoonish naivety and puppyish need for constant attention. A specific scene in The Office’s pilot episode proved exactly why Michael Scott couldn’t simply be the American David Brent.

The Office’s 1st Episode Copied The UK Version, And It Didn't Work

This Episode Is A Shot-For-Shot Remake Of Its British Equivalent

The Office's pilot episode did a virtually shot-for-shot remake of The Office UK’s, which was a mistake. For example, in one of its last scenes, office manager Michael Scott is trying to prove to new temp Ryan Howard just how fun a boss he can be. He explains that he’s going to play a prank, and calls the office receptionist, Pam, into the room before telling her she’s fired.

The chasm between Michael's expectation that people will find the prank funny, and the severity of Pam’s negative reaction, leaves us cringing in agony.

Just as David Brent does in the original British version of the scene, Michael continues with the ruse until his receptionist is brought to tears. When Pam starts crying, Michael is shocked by the effect his words have had, and its to her that he was playing a practical joke. Pam then insults him, just as receptionist Dawn Tinsley does in the equivalent scene of the British Office.

The comic purpose of the scene is to show how far Michael can go in his desperation to impress a temporary subordinate, as well as how little he understands his employees and how to treat them. The chasm between his expectation that people will find the prank funny, and the severity of Pam’s negative reaction, leaves us cringing in agony.

This Type Of Humor Didn’t Work In The American Version Of The Office

It’s More Upsetting Than Painfully Funny

David interviewing a secretary in The Office UK

Cringe humor is the very essence of the humor in Ricky Gervais’ British version of The Office, just as social awkwardness and embarrassment are pillars of British comedy at large. This form of comedy doesn’t translate quite so well in the United States, however. Even when cringe comedy is performed in the US, there are subtle tonal differences from the British way of doing it. These differences are evident when we compare the ways Gervais and Steve Carell act out their respective versions of The Office’s joke-firing scene.

As David Brent, Ricky Gervais leans into the awkwardness of the situation. He draws out silences, has Brent pretend to read a piece of paper rather than make eye with Dawn as she sobs, and mumbles his ission of the prank in a low voice.

At the same time, Gervais is careful not to make his character too sympathetic. He spends most of the scene facing temp Ricky Howard when he talks, and gives Ricky playful slaps on the back, giving the impression that Brent feels he’s entertaining a new friend with laddish banter while subjecting Dawn to bullying. He flashes an occasional glance down the lens of the camera in the corner of the room, too, to make sure he has a mass audience for his prank. When Dawn calls him a “sad little man”, she says what we’re all thinking.

Three side by side images of characters from The Office US & UK

The Office UK Vs US: 15 Biggest Differences

We break down some of the biggest differences between The Office UK vs The Office US to explore what made both shows work so well.

Posts

Steve Carell’s Michael Scott, on the other hand, seems completely out of his depth in the same situation. He takes his joke way too far, as the script demands. Yet he isn’t as bullishly misogynistic in his body language and manners as Brent is, and even tries to blame the temp Ryan Howard for the joke when Pam starts crying.

Both Carell as an actor and Michael as a character look genuinely horrified that they’ve made Pam so upset. They’re not just embarrassed that their attempt at a joke has backfired, as Brent is, but betray a sense of guilt about what they’ve done. For this reason, the comedy of the scene doesn’t quite land, as we’re left feeling more shocked and angry for Pam than embarrassed for Michael.

The Michael & Pam Scene Showed Why The US Office Needed To Change

It Proved That Michael Scott Couldn’t Be The Same Character As David Brent

David Brent is a tragic figure, who’s so desperate for validation from those he perceives as his peers — primarily younger, good-looking men — that he will do terrible things to try and attain it. Like Brent, Michael Scott is also desperate for attention, but he’s seeking the love of his team more than the validation of supposed peers. Actually, many of the worst things Michael Scott has ever done in The Office are moments in which he behaves more like David Brent than himself, particularly in the presence of Todd Packer.

Despite his foibles, Michael is fundamentally a sympathetic character whom we’re rooting for rather than against. David Brent is irredeemably pathetic, whereas Steve Carell brings a certain likability to Michael Scott in the US Office that makes certain behavior simply untenable for the viewer. Perhaps the best example of this kind of behavior comes in arguably the show’s most maligned episode. “Diversity Day” forced The Office to change course from its British inspiration. Yet the pilot episode had already given Greg Daniels and his writers all the evidence they needed that Michael Scott could never be exactly like David Brent.

Steve Carell's Michael Scott talks to the camera in The Office season 1

Michael Scott's New Look After The Office Season 1 Was More Important Than You Think

The Office's Michael Scott changed his entire appearance after season 1 of the sitcom, thus underlining a bigger change in Steve Carell's character.

Posts 1

Thankfully, they saw sense in time to make the show’s second season a whole different story. Once The Office softened Michael Scott up a little, it never looked back. But early episodes of the American series serve another purpose, in helping us to distinguish the cultural nuances of American and British humor that might otherwise go unnoticed.