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Otago Daily Times
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Ready for the apocalypse
Actor Nick Frost is ready for the end of days, he tells Tim Lewis. Nick Frost isn't messing around. "Could I have two double espressos," he says, when we meet on the dot of 10am. "So, like, four espressos." We are in a cafe, the Pheasantry, in Bushy Park, southwest London. The park, across the way from Hampton Court Palace, has been a hunting ground for kings, the spot where General Dwight Eisenhower plotted the D-Day landings from a tent and, latterly, the birthplace of Parkrun. But Frost, the 53-year-old British actor, sees other potential for this bucolic parkland now abundant with deer and protected anthills. "When me and Simon" — that's Pegg, actor and frequent Frost collaborator — "used to live together, we always had places we'd go should the zombie apocalypse actually happen", he says, necking the first of the espressos. "We had lots of rules and plans, and the Pheasantry falls into that because there's a fence all the way around. A really good fence. And you could easily cultivate the land that's here and live in this structure." With stern-faced suspicion, Frost scans the light-filled room, mainly filled with tired-looking new mums and retirees nursing a midweek cappuccino. "So this is a great zombie fallback." There are maaaaany possible follow-up questions, but I go with: where else have you identified as a decent apocalypse refuge? "Another place is Twickenham stadium because, again, it's completely fenced in," he says, the second double espresso bolted. "And you could turn the pitch — not that I've over-thought this — into quarters: one would be for grazing livestock; I'd have an orchard in another; wheat or corn, etc, in the third; then I'd leave one fallow for each season. Then just rotate. And I'd live in, like, Vodafone's executive box." Overthinking is one of Frost's defining traits, and makes him a highly entertaining, unpredictable person to spend an hour or so with. It is also very on-brand for him to spend his downtime obsessing over what would happen if the human race were faced with imminent, violent extinction. Frost has one of the great, accidental origin stories in acting. For most of his 20s he worked in Chiquito's, a Mexican chain on London's North Circular, first as a waiter and later as a line cook. A random meeting with Pegg, whose girlfriend worked in the restaurant, led first to a flat-share and then the cult TV series Spaced , written by Pegg and Jessica Hynes, and then Shaun of the Dead , a comedy about friends who have to problem-solve their way out of — yep — a zombie apocalypse, both of which Frost, laconically, starred in. "Even when I was 28, 29, when we were just starting to do Spaced , I had no plan at all," recalls Frost. "Like, I just did a thing. Another thing turned up, and I did that. I went back to waitering after Spaced." Frost's involvement, with Pegg and the director Edgar Wright, in the Cornetto trilogy — Shaun of the Dead , Hot Fuzz and The World's End — is enough to guarantee him life membership in the British film pantheon. But he's clearly a grafter: alongside his prolific work in movies and TV, he's written a pair of screenplays and a couple of books. The first, Truth, Half Truths and Little White Lies , was a memoir, telling his chaotic life story until he landed Spaced ; the second, A Slice of Fried Gold , was nominally a cookbook, interspersed with haphazard reflections from his life and career, but much more unhinged and poignant than that sounds. Frost also makes and sells paintings. "People think, because you made Shaun of the Dead , you're a billionaire," he says. "The money you get paid for a film is ... it's not forever. I work because a) I like it, but b) I have to, like everyone." Every three months or so, Frost will receive a royalty cheque from his acting work. He makes a great ceremony of gathering the family — his partner Hayley, their son and daughter, aged 6 and 4, and his teenage son from a previous relationship — for the reveal. "Everyone crowds around to see me opening it," he says. "And I always pretend: 'We've done it! We've done it!' And it's £35." Still, playing the long game seems to be paying off. Frost recently landed two of the starriest roles of his career: first up, he is Gobber the Belch, the wise-cracking blacksmith, in the live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon , the Cressida Cowell series that became an acclaimed animated trilogy. Then — even bigger — he is about to start shooting HBO's TV adaptation of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, with each of the seven books luxuriating in its own eight-episode season. Frost was recently unveiled as Rubeus Hagrid, the Hogwarts groundskeeper originally played in the films by Robbie Coltrane. The news still seems to be sinking in. "Both projects are in genres that I have loved my whole life, in terms of fantasy and wizards and witchcraft," he says. "Especially Harry Potter. It's like ... I'm f...... Hagrid!" We'll come back to all that, but first there's the tumultuous past few years to process — what Frost calls "the big bang" of his life. The cafe has been descended on by a throng of runners and dog-walkers, so we decide to stretch our legs in the garden. It's an idyllic morning: rows of goslings waddle in front of us. But his survival instincts never leave high alert. "See, you're fenced in, so you're safe," he says, surveying the Pheasantry's lush lawns, "lots of rabbits as well". Frost, who today wears a velour Sergio Tacchini top, blue cords and Asics running shoes, looks great, and that's part of the story. "Six years ago I stopped taking any kind of drink or mind-bending substance," he says. That went OK, but he started to find that he was swapping those dependencies for over-indulging in food, and his weight crept up to 35 stone. "Food had been my first addiction when I was 10," Frost says. This was the year his 18-year-old sister died of an asthma attack. "And I realised that it's fine to stop all that sh.. [drink and drugs]. But then going in the car and parking down by the river when it was nighttime and eating a tier of a wedding cake, that's going to f...... kill you, as well." Frost accepted he needed a more drastic overhaul. "Just a realisation that I would die," he says, matter-of-factly. "And a realisation that I had very young children, and this is how I am, and they're going to be left without a dad. It was like, 'What the f... are you doing, you nutter?'." Some of the changes are physical — Frost had his knee replaced last year and now regularly cycles loops of Bushy Park — and others are mental. When he was 47, about the time he was giving up drink and drugs, he was diagnosed with ADHD, OCD, PTSD, dyslexia and anxiety disorders. That knowledge has been helpful to Frost and those close to him for explaining some of his more esoteric behaviours: say, rewatching old episodes of chef Rick Stein's TV shows. "I read a thing about manifesting," Frost says, referring to the time he was waiting to hear about Harry Potter. "And I thought, 'Let's write the word Hagrid down as many times I can'. And I wrote it down 5000 times. But rereading it back, my dyslexia took over at some point, and I didn't realise that for 2000 of them, I'd been writing 'Hadridge', I was spelling it completely wrong. So I'm still waiting to get the call to say, 'Nick, you're Hadridge, you've got it'."' The Hagrid announcement in April was, in some ways, bittersweet for Frost. He had to disable comments on his triumphant Instagram post after criticism came from trans-rights supporters that he would collaborate with Rowling, an executive producer on the new show and vocal gender-critical campaigner. "She's allowed her opinion and I'm allowed mine, they just don't align in any way, shape or form," Frost says. Does he worry that the debate might overshadow the series? "I don't know," he replies. "But maybe it shouldn't blow over? We shouldn't just hope it will go away, because it makes it easier. Maybe we should educate ourselves." We're back at Frost's car — surprisingly tidy for someone with young children — and he offers me a ride to the station. We talk about his tattoos, which he started getting compulsively after his father died, when Frost was 39. "The San Quentin sketchbook," he says, smiling, "the sh....., the better". One tattoo comes up repeatedly in our conversation: wobbly, ink-black writing on his forearm reads "Poor Old Me", a reminder to Frost to count his blessings, of which, he acknowledges, there are a multitude right now. As the car pulls into the station, Frost says, "I hate the word 'legacy', but there's always a part of me that wants to be remembered when I die. That's why I want to be buried, so I've got a little headstone somewhere. I write in the cookbook that the only thing I've got of my mum's was a f...... spoon. That's it. And I think, 'I'd want to be more than a spoon'." — The Observer
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
16 Great TV Shows on Amazon Prime Video Right Now (May 2025)
Few streamers keep a foot in the past and the present in the same way that Amazon Prime Video curates its lineup of TV shows. In the last few weeks alone, Prime Video has debuted new shows like The Bondsman and The Narrow Road to the Deep North, as well as the teen drama Motorheads, which debuted at No. 1 on Amazon's most popular TV chart. Prime Video also has a strong library of classic television series, including Spaced, a cult-favorite British sitcom that helped make Simon Pegg into a star years before he was costarring in the Mission: Impossible movies. All of these series can be found among the 16 great TV shows on Amazon Prime Video right now. Need more recommendations? Then read Best New Shows to Watch on Netflix, Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and More, Best Comedy Shows to Stream Right Now and Best TV Shows on Amazon Prime Video Right may remind some viewers of the first Fast and the Furious movie if it was envisioned through a YA lens. Michael Cimino and Melissa Collazo star as siblings Zac and Caitlyn Torres, a pair of teens who move back to their father's hometown to live with their uncle, Logan Maddox (Ryan Phillippe). Michael and Melissa are trying to escape the shadow of their father, Christian Maddox (Deacon Phillippe), who was a racing legend in his era. It doesn't take long for the siblings to make an enemy out of Harris Bowers (Josh Macqueen), a rich kid with a reputation for being the best racer in town. To take Harris down, they're going to need to restore their dad's old Charger and enlist the help of their very reluctant uncle. Motorheads is streaming on Prime Video. Five years before Shawn of the Dead hit theaters, Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson co-created and starred in the British sitcom Spaced. They played Tim Bisley and Daisy Steiner, two strangers who decide to pretend to be a couple in order to land a new place to live that is run under a very strict set of rules by their landlady, Marsha Klein (Julia Deakin). Edgar Wright — the director of Shawn of the Dead — helmed every episode of Spaced, while Pegg's frequent co-star, Nick Frost, played Tim's best friend, Mike Watt. Spaced had a very bizarre and even surreal sense of humor, while Tim and Daisy spent a lot of time denying they were a couple to their friends even though there is clearly an attraction between them. Spaced is streaming on Prime Video. Hub Halloran (Kevin Bacon) is dead, but he gets better in The Bondsman. While he was alive, Hub was one of the best bounty hunters in the south. That's a talent that the devil won't let go to waste. Through his intermediary, Midge Kusatsu (Jolene Purdy), the devil resurrects Hub with a new mission in life to hunt down escaped demons and send them back to Hell. This wasn't something that Hub asked for, but he'll take his second chance at life to fix some of the mistakes he made the first time. That includes mending fences with his family and rediscovering some of the passions that he left behind. He'll be a better man if he can keep up his end of the devil's bargain. The Bondsman is streaming on Prime Video. Nathan Fillion had his first true breakout role as novelist Richard Castle on ABC's Castle. After meeting NYPD Detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic), Castle is so taken by her that he decides to write a new book featuring a main character based on her. Castle then pulls some strings with the mayor to get permission to follow Beckett as she investigates homicide cases. Although Beckett initially resents Castle's presence, he helps her solve many murder investigations. And as the pair grows closer, Castle learns about the investigation that Beckett has been trying to solve her entire life: the murder of her mother, Johanna Beckett. That story takes years to play out. Reportedly, Fillion and Katic didn't get along very well, but that's hard to tell from the early seasons when Castle and Beckett's romantic tension was at an all-time high. They were fun to watch together, even in the later seasons. Castle is streaming on Prime Video. Not every love affair is everlasting in The Narrow Road to the Deep North, but Dorrigo Evans () would be lost without it. This adaptation of Richard Flanagan's novel chronicles Dorrigo's torrid romance with Amy Mulvaney (Odessa Young), a young woman who is his aunt by marriage. Throughout World War II, the memory of what Dorrigo shared with Amy sustains him even while he's a prisoner of war. As Dorrigo's men die of disease and starvation around him, he holds on to the warmth and hope that Amy gave him. But his story doesn't stop after the war, and Dorrigo's life doesn't play out like a romantic fairy tale with a happy ending for everyone. The Narrow Road to the Deep North is streaming on Prime Video. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) wasn't the most popular character on Cheers three decades ago, but he was the right choice to be featured in the spinoff Frasier. This sitcom equalled the 11-season run of its predecessor and became a classic in its own series expanded Frasier's character development by introducing his brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce), their blue-collar father Martin (John Mahoney), and Martin's physical therapist Daphne Moon (Jane Leeves). Frasier also reinvented himself as a radio show host alongside his producer, Roz Doyle (Peri Gilpin). This group of performers had outstanding chemistry, and they collectively ensured that Frasier is still one of the best comedy series two decades after its conclusion. Frasier is streaming on Prime Video. Although The Wheel of Time recently returned for its third season on Prime Video, you should probably start at the beginning before diving into this show. This adaptation of Robert Jordan's novels has a dense mythology that rivals Game of Thrones in scope, and it easily outshines Prime Video's other big-budget fantasy show, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Pike leads the cast as Moiraine Damodred, a powerful channeler of magic who is seeking the Dragon Reborn, the reincarnation of one of the few men who can use magic in this world. Moiraine believes she's found the one she's looking for among four young men and women, including Rand al'Thor (Josha Stradowski) and Egwene al'Vere (Madeleine Madden). All four have hidden abilities and a destiny that will slowly unfold, but not all of them will ultimately be aligned against the coming darkness. The Wheel of Time is streaming on Prime Video. The irony of Fallout's breakthrough as one of Amazon's top series is that the video game franchise hasn't had a new game since 2018. But the retro-futuristic post-apocalypse of the games gives the TV series a rich backdrop and an intriguing mythology to Ella Purnell stars as Lucy MacLean, a young woman who has lived inside a colony deep within a vault her entire life. Lucy didn't really have any concept of what life was like outside until her colony was attacked by raiders who kidnapped her father, Hank (Kyle MacLachlan). When Lucy sets out on a rescue mission in the wasteland, one of the first people she meets is The Ghoul (Walton Goggins), a mutated man who was once an actor named Cooper Howard. The Ghoul has lived hundreds of years, and he's no friend to Lucy, but he does have some very hard lessons to teach her. Fallout is streaming on Prime Video. Invincible may seem like an overnight success for Amazon, but the comic it's based on is 22 years old and still resonates with this adaptation. Co-creator Robert Kirkman (The Walking Dead) has a knack for creating likable characters and then putting them through horrible things. This show may be animated, but it hits harder than many R-rated films with its brutal action. And it doesn't shy away from the toll that violence takes on the heroes and the world around Grayson (Steven Yeun) grew up in the shadow of the world's strongest hero, his father, Omni-Man (J. K. Simmons). Once Mark comes into his powers as Invincible, he discovers his father's true agenda for Earth. If Mark wants to save the only world he's ever known from his own flesh and blood, then he'll have to live up to his superhero name. Invincible is streaming on Prime Video. Alan Ritchson has played superheroes before, but he's never played a larger-than-life character like Jack Reacher until now. Reacher makes Ritchson seem like an uncommon man among men as he drifts from town to town and takes on the rich and powerful while combating injustice. The recently premiered third season puts Reacher in his toughest case to date as he goes undercover in a criminal organization to locate a missing DEA agent and to bring down a crime lord. And for the first time since the show began, Reacher has finally met an enemy who physically towers over him: Paul "Paulie" van Hove (Olivier Richters). Reacher is streaming on Prime Video. Moonlighting is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2025, and it made Bruce Willis famous while giving Cybill Shepherd a Hollywood comeback. This quirky comedy/drama featured Shepherd as a former model, Madelyn "Maddie" Hayes, who reinvents herself as a private detective alongside David Addison (Willis).The dialogue in this series and the fantastic chemistry between Shepherd and Willis entertained a lot of fans in the '80s. Moonlighting took dramatic chances and big swings like few series do, and not all of them connected with its audience. But this series is more than just a footnote in history, it's also one of the all-time greats. Moonlighting is streaming on Prime Video. If you know anything about English history, then you're probably well aware that King Henry VIII didn't look anything like actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers. And you're probably not going to care about that level of historical fidelity when watching The Tudors. This series was a Showtime original, and it liberally blended historical fact and fiction as it chronicled Henry's tumultuous of Thrones' Natalie Dormer had one of her first big roles in this series as Anne Boleyn, one of Henry's many wives. Unfortunately for the ladies, Henry rarely let his wives off easily when he wanted out of their union. And their heads aren't the only ones that will roll in this entertaining series. The Tudors is streaming on Prime Video. There's something so inherently charming about Hugh Laurie that it's a pleasure watching him perform as Dr. Gregory House even when he's being a huge jerk to his patients, his colleagues and even to himself. House was a medical procedural like no other, and the title character was modeled after Sherlock Holmes. If you watch the show's entire eight-season run, you'll see a lot of parallels between House and the great detective. The secret to House's success is that Laurie was surrounded by a very talented supporting cast, including Lisa Edelstein, Omar Epps, Robert Sean Leonard, Jennifer Morrison, Jesse Spencer, Olivia Wilde, Kal Penn, and more. Their characters added more dimension to the show and helped flesh out House himself. House is streaming on Prime Video. The Expanse has been described as Game of Thrones in space, and that's not entirely inaccurate. Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck – who collectively write as James S. A. Corey – crafted a very believable future for humanity that's not some idealized Star Trek fantasy. Who needs aliens when humans are still itching for a war against each other? The people of Earth and Mars are at each other's throats, while the humans in the asteroid belt are considered second-class citizens by both Holden (Steven Strait), Naomi Nagata (Dominique Tipper), Amos Burton (Wes Chatham) and Alex Kamal (Cas Anvar) are the only survivors of a mining ship that stumbles across a deadly conspiracy to reshape worlds. In another part of the galaxy, Detective Joe Miller (Thomas Jane) is unknowingly tied to their fate as his missing person case takes on a significance that goes far beyond his wildest dreams. The Expanse is streaming on Prime Video. If you feel like the creative team behind The Boys hates superheroes, then you're probably right. This is perhaps the most cynical comic book adaptation ever, and it features 'heroes' like Homelander (Antony Starr) who openly have contempt for the people they're supposed to be protecting. Hugh Campbell (Novacaine's Jack Quaid) discovers this unfortunate truth when his girlfriend is accidentally killed by one of the world's fastest heroes, A-Train (Jessie T. Usher).That's where Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) comes in. No one despises 'supes' more than Butcher, and he's got a vendetta against Homelander for deeply personal reasons. Billy recruits Hugh to join his team, The Boys, to bring down all the heroes. But the odds are always stacked against them. The Boys is streaming on Prime Video. Comedy and mystery collide in Monk, an unforgettable series that was once one of the most popular shows on cable during its eight seasons on the USA Network. Tony Shalhoub brings a lot to his character, Adrian Monk, especially when Monk is so hilariously neurotic and ruled by his phobias. Despite his overpowering OCD, Monk is a world-class detective, but he needs someone to keep him on track. In the first few seasons, that person was his assistant, Sharona Fleming (Bitty Schram), while Traylor Howard's Natalie Teeger took on that function from season 3 onward. Almost every episode is neatly tied up, but the mystery of who killed Monk's wife is saved until the very end of the series. Monk is streaming on Prime Video.
Daily Record
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Friday Night Dinner fans must watch forgotten sitcom with 100% Rotten Tomatoes score
The 90s dramedy is still celebrated over 25 years after its debut Friday Night Dinner fans have been urged to watch a British sitcom that aired 12 years before the Channel 4 hit show. A TV enthusiast recently appealed to Reddit users, asking them to recommend similar "light-hearted shows." The thread quickly garnered over 100 comments, with some urging the original user to stream Spaced, which also aired on Channel 4. Making its debut in 1999, the two-season series received critical acclaim during its time on air. It was nominated for a British Comedy Award for Best TV Sitcom in its first year on air, and went on to received two BAFTA TV Award nominations for Best Situation Comedy. Written by Simon Pegg and Jessica Hynes (née Stevenson), who also star, the comedy follows 20-somethings Tim and Daisy. Desperate to find a new home, the duo pose as a couple to secure the only apartment they can afford. Pegg and Stevenson are joined by Julia Deakin, Nick Frost and Mark Heap, who also starred in Friday Night Dinner. Behind the scenes, celebrated filmmaker Edgar Wright serves as the director. Over 25 years since its debut, Spaced is still a hit with viewers and critics alike, boasting a rare 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating for both seasons. What's more, viewers are still petitioning for the show's return, with one voicing: "I wish this show could come back!" Audiences on IMDb are equally enthusiastic about the Pegg-led comedy. "Possibly the best thing to ever happen to television," raves a recent review. The viewer continues: "The whole two series was as close to perfect as I can imagine. Funny, beautifully shot, well-produced, the only downside was that there wasn't more of it." Another fan agreed, writing: "Possibly the best British show ever," before adding: "Simon Pegg, master of modern comedy and the gorgeous Jessica Stevenson [...] have written and starred in what I consider to be the best British comedy ever." Meanwhile, a third viewer echoed the praise: "Having just watched this series again, I am prepared to say that 'Spaced' is definitely one of the greatest comedy shows EVER!" With a final person sharing their verdict: "It's just brilliant! It's one of my favourite shows and I love rewatching it and noticing all of the different little laughs!"
See - Sada Elbalad
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- See - Sada Elbalad
Nick Frost Nears Deal to Play Hagrid in HBO's "Harry Potter" TV Series
Yara Sameh HBO continues to put together a vast ensemble cast for its high-profile TV adaptation of the hugely popular Harry Potter fantasy books. British actor-comedian Nick Frost, known for his turns in Edgar Wright's comedic Cornetto trilogy, is nearing a deal to play Rubeus Hagrid, the loveable kindly half-giant groundskeeper of Hogwarts. While HBO didn't comment on Frost's potential involvement, though they provided the cagey response that, 'We appreciate that such a high-profile series will draw a lot of rumor and speculation.' 'As we make our way through pre-production, we will only confirm details as we finalize deals,' the network continued. It is the same statement that HBO issued when reports emerged that John Lithgow was in talks to play Albus Dumbledore. (The actor has since confirmed his casting.) Reports of Frost's involvement emerge days after the actor posted a cryptic message on his Instagram , saying 'What a bloody lovely day! It's happening, it's actually happening. Stay cool.' Hagrid is a key figure across all seven books in J.K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter' series, first appearing to inform the series 11-year-old protagonist that he is a wizard before absconding him to Hogwarts. The character was played by Robbie Coltrane in the original 'Harry Potter' film franchise, who appeared in all eight installments. Coltrane died in 2022 at the age of 72. Frost was first known to audiences as a cast member of the British comedy series 'Spaced,' which launched a collaborative partnership with co-star Simon Pegg and director Edgar Wright. The trio made three genre films together, informally known as the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, which included 'Shaun of the Dead,' 'Hot Fuzz' and 'The World's End.' Frost also co-wrote and co-starred in the alien comedy 'Paul,' working with Pegg. He was last credited as the voice of the swashbuckling droid SM-33 in Disney +'s 'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.' Frost can next be seen in June in Universal's live-action remake of 'How to Train Your Dragon.' The 52-year-old actor would join a cast that now includes John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore. Paapa Essiedu is reportedly a top contender to play Severus Snape. The roles of Harry, Hermione and Ron — the trio of main characters — will likely be played by newcomers, as Warner Bros. launched an open casting call for kids aged between 9 and 11 in the fall of 2024. HBO plans to produce 'Harry Potter' over the course of a decade, adapting each of Rowling's books into a season of television. Francesca Gardiner is showrunner and executive producer, while Mark Mylod will direct multiple episodes and executive produce. Series author J.K. Rowling is also an executive producer. In recent years, the writer has become a controversial figure, even among her own fanbase, for having made her campaign against trans identity a central focus of her online persona. 'J.K. Rowling has a right to express her personal views,' a spokesperson for HBO said in November. 'We will remain focused on the development of the new series, which will only benefit from her involvement.' read more New Tourism Route To Launch in Old Cairo Ahmed El Sakka-Led Play 'Sayidati Al Jamila' to Be Staged in KSA on Dec. 6 Mandy Moore Joins Season 2 of "Dr. Death" Anthology Series Don't Miss These Movies at 44th Cairo Int'l Film Festival Today Amr Diab to Headline KSA's MDLBEAST Soundstorm 2022 Festival Arts & Culture Mai Omar Stuns in Latest Instagram Photos Arts & Culture "The Flash" to End with Season 9 Arts & Culture Ministry of Culture Organizes four day Children's Film Festival Arts & Culture Canadian PM wishes Muslims Eid-al-Adha News Egypt confirms denial of airspace access to US B-52 bombers News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Lifestyle Pistachio and Raspberry Cheesecake Domes Recipe Videos & Features Bouchra Dahlab Crowned Miss Arab World 2025 .. Reem Ganzoury Wins Miss Arab Africa Title (VIDEO) News Ireland Replaces Former Israeli Embassy with Palestinian Museum News Israeli PM Diagnosed with Stage 3 Prostate Cancer Lifestyle Maguy Farah Reveals 2025 Expectations for Pisces News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers
The Independent
24-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
‘I imagine most Americans don't even know about the British show': Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant on the US Office at 20
People loved The Office, which was a big problem,' says Ricky Gervais in an exclusive interview with The Independent, recalling the unusual but flattering issue facing its much-loved American counterpart, which turns 20 today. 'All of the people who knew The Office, loved The Office, and they were the industry. People were assuming [the remake] was going to be hated.' When it comes to bringing British telly to the US, the track record hasn't been great. Blighty classics such as Spaced, The Vicar of Dibley, This Country and even Taskmaster have each had a punt at Stateside success; all were swiftly and unceremoniously cancelled. So when Gervais and The Office co-creator Stephen Merchant got a call from TV producer Ben Silverman saying he wanted to adapt their drab workplace mockumentary for an American crowd, expectations were immediately low. 'I'd seen 30 years of every single remake failing,' says Gervais. 'Some were pulled after the first episode, because advertising was so important. They'd just kill it. [But] I thought 'Why not?' I've got nothing to lose, nothing to beat. It'll be fun.'' Merchant, a longtime mega-fan of the all-American sitcom, had a similar attitude. 'The idea of an American version always seemed exciting to me,' he tells me, highlighting his love of US classics like M.A.S.H, Roseanne and Cheers. 'But when it first got mooted, there had been such a lack of success in remaking British shows that I was a little circumspect about what our chances were, but at the same time, I was enthusiastic.' Released on BBC Two in 2001, the original was a homegrown hit, amassing Baftas and Emmy wins year on year. Abroad, too, there were whispers of this brilliant British comedy about a Slough-based paper company you simply had to see. In writers' rooms across America, Gervais's agonisingly cringy boss David Brent became a word-of-mouth hit. Likewise, his employees: office lovebirds Tim (Martin Freeman) and Dawn (Lucy Davis), and by-the-book military mind Gareth (Mackenzie Crook). From the outset, though, both Merchant and Gervais knew they shouldn't be the ones to bring The Office to the US. 'I always felt it was important we didn't try to do it ourselves,' admits Merchant, explaining why they chose to pass the baton to a new team. 'You think you know America because we're so consumed by it, but we really don't. There's so many little nuances about American life and particularly office life,' he adds, pointing to British traditions like pub quizzes and Gareth's precious Territorial Army that don't quite translate. 'We'd have been trying to replicate ours too closely and wouldn't have got it right.' 'We had to choose showrunners and we saw the cream of American producers and directors,' adds Gervais. 'It was embarrassing that I was choosing from people who had done 1,000 times more than me. They'd worked on everything from Cheers to King of the Hill.' Among them was Greg Daniels, a softly spoken American screenwriter whose previous credits included Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons. 'They could've all done a great job but Greg was the only one who went on about how important Tim and Dawn's story was,' continues Gervais. 'He knew romance was an important element,' agrees Merchant. Before Daniels could get to that, however, he first had to find America's David Brent – or as he'd be renamed in the US version, Michael Scott, Manager of the Scranton branch of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. Initially, Silverman thought Gervais could fit the bill, but the Brent Meister General had other ideas. 'Before we cast, [Silverman] called me and said 'Why don't you play Michael Scott?' I said, 'That is mental. It makes no sense at all,'' laughs Gervais. 'Why would I do it? The reason The Office resonated was because it was made in England for English people. It's got to be made by Americans for Americans.' At the end of the day, Gervais says, the real reason he declined was because he didn't want to move to America for seven years and work five days a week, doing 14 hours a day. 'I'd have been crying after the first 22 episodes, asking Dwight [Rainn Wilson] to murder me,' he jokes. As it turns out, Gervais did have someone in mind who he thought could play the role quite well. 'Before all this happened, someone asked me, 'If they did an American remake, who would I have [play Brent] and I said Bruno Kirby, now no longer with us,' reveals Gervais. 'I'd seen him in City Slickers and he was also in Good Morning Vietnam playing the bore who thought he was funnier than Robin Williams. I thought that was just beautiful.' Ultimately, it was The Daily Show 's Steve Carell who nabbed the role, but many others came close. ' Bob Odenkirk would've been brilliant,' says Merchant, recalling a selection process that saw the Breaking Bad stand-out make the Michael Scott shortlist. 'It's interesting. Initially, he didn't seem to have the immediate warmth that Carell [had], or certainly not then. Yet, when you've seen him in things like Better Call Saul, it's all there. It's hard to know,' he says. 'It would've been equally good but sometimes when you're casting, you can feel when it's the right person.' And that person was, without a shadow of a doubt, Carell. So was there a Brent handover process? Gervais insists there wasn't. In fact, Carell actively tried to avoid his British counterpart. 'When Steve got the job he said, 'I have to stop watching it so I don't do an impression of you,'' Gervais says, 'because once you see Brent's tics, they're irresistible – looking awkward, saying nothing and looking at the camera.' Merchant recalls similar worries. 'He was quite cautious about not trying to replicate Ricky. The more he got into the role, the more the shadow of Ricky's performance disappeared. By the second series, he'd got into a groove of his own and was able to inhabit the character in the way Ricky had.' Elsewhere, Daniels saw a who's who of up-and-coming talent to fill out the Scranton branch. 'I remember John Krasinksi [who played Tim, the American equivalent of Jim] was incredibly enthusiastic and a fan of the original,' remembers Merchant. 'He understood the character and what Martin Freeman had done and was effortlessly sweet and charming. He was such a fan, he went unprompted to the real [Scranton] to film some footage. That footage in the show's opening credits was shot by Krasinski.' I was worried about Dwight. I thought he was too over the top but then that just settled in and worked with the show – because the show was bigger as well Ricky Gervais But while Brent had to be softened for US consumption ('They had to make him a little nicer, better at the job, more positive and a little less dark,' says Gervais), the character of Gareth risked becoming too broad. 'I was worried about Dwight,' admits Gervais, commenting on the office authoritarian, played by Wilson. 'I thought he was too over the top, but then that just settled in and worked with the show – because the show was bigger as well.' Merchant agrees, adding that 'at first there's a theatricality to the performance, but as you watch it, he's just able to make it rich'. Despite a rocky start that almost saw the show cancelled after its first season, the US iteration of The Office ended up running for nine beloved seasons, seven with Carell as boss. 'They evolved him very nicely. Towards the end of his time there, you're rooting for him and want him to be happy,' smiles Merchant. 'We couldn't have begrudged Steve for leaving because we were so lucky to have had him for so many great episodes. I suspected it'd be tricky for them to carry on, but by that point, you can write a character out and the juggernaut keeps moving.' 'When they were recruiting for the new boss[eventually played by Will Ferrell], they said it'd be nice if I apply for the job [in character as Brent],' says Gervais on his long-awaited crossover cameo. Was there ever talk of him taking over after Carell left? 'There was. I don't know if it ever got to NBC calling anyone or if it was more just press and the show's fanbase,'he says, adding with a laugh. 'Then, when I wasn't in it, people said, 'Ricky auditioned and didn't get the part.' That's fiction.' Looking back 20 years on, both creators are able to appreciate the extended universe birthed from their Slough-based story. 'I imagine most Americans don't know about the English show – but the good thing is, I get credit for both,' Gervais chuckles. 'There's our version and this brilliant cover version. They share many of the same elements but they're both different,' offers Merchant. 'I'm extremely proud of the American one and if I'm flicking through TV and it's on, I'll watch it as a fan,' he smiles. 'I can see it from a distance and enjoy it like anyone else.'
