DreamWorks Pictures
While on the set of Anchorman, Steve Carrell says that fellow co-star Paul Rudd told him not to audition for The Office. Carrell, of course, eventually did and the role of Michael Scott would go on to change his career.
During a recent appearance on Amy Poehler’s podcast to promote his new HBO series Rooster, Steve Carell recalled how his Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy co-star Paul Rudd warned him against auditioning for The Office, which would go on to become one of the century’s most iconic sitcoms.
Steve Carell recalled Paul Rudd telling him not to audition for The Office while they were on the set of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
Poehler said that, at the time, she also thought a remake of The Office was a bad idea, saying: “This is a terrible idea. No one can be as good as Ricky Gervais, no one can do that show.” Apparently Rudd agreed with that sentiment.
“Rudd pulled me aside and was like, ‘Don’t do it, man. Don’t audition,’” Carell told Poehler on her Good Hang podcast. “It was like, ‘There is no way.’”
According to Carell, the pilot for The Office — a remake of the UK version starring Ricky Gervais — was the “lowest testing in the history of NBC.”
“Our pilot was the lowest testing pilot in the history of NBC. People really hated it. They actively hated it. And I don’t quite know how it got legs after that.”
In addition to Anchorman, Rudd and Carell also starred together in its sequel, 2013’s Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, and the 2010 comedy Dinner for Schmucks.