Report: NBC is looking to spin off 'Office' Sitcom would be built around character of Dwight Schrute By Bill Cromwell Jan 27, 2012 Share | "The Office" may be losing another lead character, but this time he's not going far. NBC is rumored to be considering an "Office" spinoff starring Rainn Wilson, who plays oddball salesman Dwight Schrute. The new show would follow Schrute after he quits Dunder Mifflin, frustrated at being passed over for a promotion, and returns home to his family's farm. Deadline.com, which first reported the news, says the show would focus on Schrute and several generations of his family. NBC has not commented on the report. It's not surprising that the network would consider such a program, as every hit show has the potential to spawn a spinoff. The only surprise is that struggling NBC would wait this long, eight years into "The Office's" run, to make the move after abandoning an earlier attempt a few years ago. The best time to launch a spinoff is when the show it's spawned from is red hot. But "Office" is in the midst of a decline that was hastened by the departure of lead actor Steve Carell last year. This season "Office" is averaging a 3.2 in adults 18-49, according to Nielsen, down 11 percent from a 3.6 last season. Some of that drop is certainly attributable to Carell's absence. His Michael Scott was one of the most interesting and well-played characters on TV, and while the writers have move on from his departure admirably, it's difficult to lose a lead character this late in a show's run and maintain the same audience. Yet even with the ratings declines, "Office" remains NBC's top scripted series by far. "Whitney," with a 2.2, is No. 2. "Office's" ratings would likely drop even more sharply if Wilson were to depart, but it's a chance NBC is probably willing to take if the spinoff shows creative promise. Most shows lose viewers anyway this late into their run, and with the network struggling to find viable scripted shows, an "Office" spinoff is probably a better option than any other unproven comedy. ***

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Bill Cromwell is a staff writer for Media Life.	© 2012 Media Life Magazine