For years, The Office has inspired heated debates about everything from Jim’s pranks to the ethics of Michael Scott’s management style - but one of the more intriguing corners of the fandom revolves around a The Office fan theory that completely changes the significance of show’s famous mockumentary format. This particular theory doesn’t just reframe the fictional documentary, either. It ties the U.S. series directly to its British predecessor, implying a much deeper connection between the two versions than most viewers ever realized.
The Office U.S., which aired from 2005 to 2013, was adapted from Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s UK original. However, according to the theory, it wasn’t just inspired by it creatively behind the camera - it was inspired by it on-screen and in-universe too. In other words, in the world of the show, Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch agreed to let a film crew into their lives after seeing the results of a similar documentary shot at a paper company across the pond. If this is true, it adds a whole new layer to how we interpret everything from the characters’ camera glances to the show’s overall existence - and once I became aware of this The Office fan theory, I couldn’t unsee it.
The Office's Scranton Documentary Was A Rip-off Of The British Documentary
The Dunder Mifflin Documentary Was Supposedly Greenlit After The Wernham Hogg One Aired In-Universe
The core of this The Office fan theory lies in a simple yet brilliant idea: the documentary team behind the U.S. version of The Office only got their project off the ground because of the success of the UK version’s fictional documentary. Within the show's universe, the documentary about Wernham Hogg aired in the early 2000s, and its raw, awkward, hilariously mundane footage sparked just enough interest to inspire a copycat project in America. In short, the theory suggests that the filmmakers behind the Dunder Mifflin documentary were outright ripping off their British predecessors.
If true, that would mean Dunder Mifflin executives were approached with a pitch along the lines of: “We already did this in Slough, England. Now let’s try it in Scranton, Pennsylvania.” It also reframes the behavior of many characters in early episodes. Michael Scott’s bizarre attempts at performance, Dwight’s intense attention to detail, and Jim’s frequent smirks at the camera suddenly feel like reactions to a phenomenon they’ve already seen unfold elsewhere. They’re not just behaving this way because of the presence of cameras - they know what kind of footage makes it into these documentaries.
It also helps explain the early awkwardness of The Office season 1. The first six episodes of the U.S. version are strikingly similar in tone and style to the UK version, almost as if the American branch was directly modeling itself after the British series. Even the pacing, bleak office atmosphere, and abrupt cuts mirror the UK show. If the characters had watched the Wernham Hogg documentary, their early discomfort and mimicry would make perfect sense. They're playing roles they think they’re supposed to play.
This in-universe explanation gives the American version of The Office a fascinating layer of meta-commentary. It’s no longer just a remake - it’s a sequel disguised as a reboot, with its subjects knowingly participating in the exact type of documentary they once watched from afar.
David Brent Exists In The Office US, So The British Documentary Most Likely Does Too
David Brent’s Cameos Prove He’s Real In The U.S. Office Universe - And So Is His Documentary
The strongest piece of evidence ing this The Office fan theory is the fact that David Brent, played by Ricky Gervais, canonically exists within the world of The Office U.S. Brent, the infamous branch manager of Wernham Hogg, appears briefly in two U.S. episodes: once here he shares a moment with Michael Scott outside an elevator, and again when he applies for the job of Scranton branch manager via webcam. These weren’t Easter eggs or background nods - they were full-on character appearances, confirming Brent as a real person in the U.S. version’s world.
That elevator scene with Steve Carell and Ricky Gervais in The Office is short but incredibly telling. Michael Scott recognizes David Brent, and they instantly click over their shared, misguided sense of charm. The implication, as far as many are concerned, is that Michael knows who David is. According to the theory, the most logical reason for that recognition is that he saw Brent in the documentary filmed at Wernham Hogg. The moment plays like two reality-TV veterans meeting backstage at a reunion special, and that they’re not strangers, they’re peers.
David Brent becomes not just a character from another series, but a kind of documentary celebrity - someone who paved the way for Michael Scott’s own on-camera misadventures.
If David Brent exists in the world of The Office U.S., then the documentary that featured him must also exist. That means the Wernham Hogg documentary was released publicly in the Office universe, either as a series, a TV special, or a film. If this is the case, it becomes highly plausible that the filmmakers pitched the Scranton project as a follow-up. David Brent becomes not just a character from another series, but a kind of documentary celebrity - someone who paved the way for Michael Scott’s own on-camera misadventures.
Ricky Gervais' US Office Cameo Explained: Why David Brent Was In Scranton
Ricky Gervais had a very special cameo in The Office season 7 by reprising his role as David Brent, the character that inspired Michael Scott.
David Brent’s cameo in the American version of The Office also subtly s the idea that Michael is emulating Brent. Their conversation is brief, but the mirrored body language and shared awkwardness suggest that Michael may have modeled himself after Brent, either consciously or subconsciously. The theory implies that Michael, having watched Brent, wanted to be just as magnetic (or infamous) when his time in the spotlight came.
Do The Office US And The Office UK Really Share A Universe?
If They Do, It Explains A Lot - But It Also Opens Up Some Weird Coincidences
Despite all the compelling evidence, there’s never been an official confirmation that the UK and U.S. versions of The Office share a universe. Creators and showrunners have remained tight-lipped about any canonical connection, and most fans treat them as spiritual cousins rather than literal sequels. However, this The Office fan theory pushes many to reconsider that assumption, especially those who take Brent’s presence as a confirmation that they share a canon. If the shows do take place in the same universe, it creates some pretty bizarre implications.
For one, it would mean that the Dunder Mifflin employees aren’t just coincidentally similar to their Wernham Hogg counterparts; they’re almost uncannily alike. Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly map nearly perfectly onto Tim Canterbury and Dawn Tinsley, right down to the quiet romance, long glances, and stalled dreams. Dwight Schrute and Gareth Keenan are both officious, militaristic, and endlessly awkward. Even their desks are arranged in similar layouts. If these characters exist in the same world, the overlaps aren’t just adaptations, they’re eerie doppelgängers.
Season 1 of The Office U.S. especially adds fuel to the theory. Its tone and structure mimic the UK show so closely that it feels more like a spin-off than a remake. That uncanny resemblance could be the result of a documentary team deliberately recreating their original format with new subjects in a different country. Viewed through this lens, Scranton’s Office is an intentional sequel to Slough’s Office, repeating the experiment to see how it plays out across the Atlantic.
Ultimately, this theory doesn’t need confirmation to work.
Things get even weirder when you expand the theory further. If the UK and U.S. shows are connected, does that mean all Office series worldwide - The Office Australia or the American reboot - exist in the same shared universe too? Are they all participants in an ongoing global docies project about mundane office life? It’s a ridiculous idea, but also kind of brilliant. Ultimately, this theory doesn’t need confirmation to work. It enriches the viewing experience, retroactively explains some of the U.S. show’s oddities, and transforms The Office from a single mockumentary into an interconnected, multi-country media experiment. Personally, I’m choosing to believe it.
The Office
- Release Date
- 2005 - 2013-00-00
- Network
- NBC
- Showrunner
- Greg Daniels
Cast
Michael Scott
Dwight Schrute
WHERE TO WATCH
This mockumentary comedy series observes the mundane and humorous daily lives of employees at the Scranton branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. It offers insights into office dynamics, personalities, and the eccentric behavior of both management and staff, depicting an ordinary workplace with extraordinary characters.
- Directors
- Greg Daniels, Paul Lieberstein, Paul Feig, Randall Einhorn, Ken Kwapis
- Writers
- Ricky Gervais, Greg Daniels, B.J. Novak
- Franchise(s)
- The Office
- Main Genre
- Comedy
- Creator(s)
- Greg Daniels
- Seasons
- 9
- Story By
- Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant
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