Jenna Fischer says it’s not true ‘The Office’ went downhill after Steve Carell left

Jenna Fischer has gone against the consensus that the US version of The Office went downhill after the departure of Steve Carell.

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The actor took on the role of Pam Beesly in 188 of the 201 episodes of the hit NBC comedy series, acting alongside Carell, John Krasinski, Rainn Wilson and more. Since it came to an end, she has revisited all episodes and documented her journey working on the show on the Office Ladies podcast.

Now, since watching the workplace sitcom start to finish, Fischer has shared her overall thoughts and revealed the main thing she has noticed about the show.

“My biggest takeaway from having rewatched it was that it’s really good the whole time,” she told Dana Carvey and David Spade as part of their Fly On The Wall podcast.

She then went on to address the fan consensus that the series took a dive in quality after Carell – who played the office’s regional manager, Michael Scott – left the show in season seven.

“I think there was this lore, especially among the cast and the creatives, that maybe we hit our peak in season three or season four,” Fischer explained. “And also this belief that the two seasons after Steve left, we were just treading water and maybe they weren’t as good.

“But when I watched everything, some of my favourite episodes were in seasons eight and nine after Steve had left. There were still these amazing storylines.”

When asked about the era that was her personal favourite, Fischer shared that it was “seasons four through six” – naming the season four episode ‘Dinner Party’ as one that stands out as a personal favourite.

The Office came to an end in 2013, but remains a favourite with fans thanks to TV reruns and streaming audiences. Last year, Peacock announced a spin-off for the series called The Paper.

It is set to centre around a dying Midwestern historic newspaper and the publisher trying to revive it with volunteer reporters. The series will be set in the same universe as its predecessor, and stars Domhnall Gleeson and Sabrina Impacciatore in the leads.

The official logline for the show, as shared by Variety, reads: “The documentary crew that immortalised Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch is in search of a new subject when they discover a historic Midwestern newspaper and the publisher trying to revive it.”

Recently, it was reported that The Office actor Oscar Nuñez is set to return as his character Oscar Martinez in the upcoming Peacock series, and since then, Rashida Jones has reflected on her time on the US version of The Office, saying that she felt fans of the show didn’t like her character.

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