The Wernham Hogg Cameos We Never Got To See On The Office
While the American version of "The Office" ultimately grew into something much more complex, and some might even say, more beloved than the U.K. original, the remake borrowed structural elements that were undeniable. The show's basic presentation, a documentary-style sitcom where cringe humor often came before traditional jokes, was a significant innovation of the U.K. original, and the American version ran with that.
The characters that both shows revolved around, while greatly expanded in the US version's second season, were almost identical at the start. In the U.K. version, David Brent (Ricky Gervais) was the model for the attention-seeking, painfully unaware boss that Micheal Scott (Steve Carrell) followed. His suckup 'assistant to the regional manager' was Gareth, whose workplace-inappropriate obsession with survival techniques was shared by Dwight (Rainn Wilson). The relatable, camera-aware Tim (Martin Freeman) became the lovable Jim (John Krasinski). In the U.K. version, Tim was secretly in love with Dawn (Lucy Davis), a kind receptionist, feelings which Jim also hid for Pam (Jenna Fischer).
Although the characters in the American version of "The Office" became much more defined and distinct as the show evolved throughout its nine seasons, many fans undoubtedly wondered what might happen if the staff of the original office, Wernham Hogg, ever met the employees of Dunder Mifflin. It turns out, however, that a crossover event was closer to happening than many might guess. Here are the Wenham Hogg cameos that fans never got to see.
Plans were in the works to have cast members from the U.K. Office meet their American counterparts
The creators of the American version of "The Office" took an early interest in merging the two worlds. In June 2006, while the show was preparing for Season 3, NBC executive Ben Silverman told the New York Post that there were multiple appearances planned for the cast of the U.K. version of "The Office" on its US counterpart.
Silverman said, "There's a lot of love between [the casts and crews] of the two versions of the show. Expect some cameos from the U.K. paper company." While he wouldn't say who would appear, he was willing to say that Ricky Gervais was not one of the actors being discussed, stating, "We're going to save the big man for now."
However, fans of "The Office" know that none of these cameos ever occurred. So what happened? While fans may not know all the details, the only characters outside of David Brent who might have been recognizable to US audiences would be Tim, Dawn, and Gareth. An archived NBC.com blog post by executive producer Greg Daniels confirms that there was a discussion about bringing Mackenzie Cook on board to portray Gareth in the Season 3 episode "The Convention," but the timing never worked out (via the Wayback Machine).
The final piece to the Wernham Hogg story, however, is that it turned out "The Office" was saving David Brent for later. The character ended up appeared in two brief cameos during Season 7, one of which occurred during one of the show's best cold opens.