Unlike discussion that Charlie Sheen would be leaving CBS’ “Two and a Half Men,” which came across as a clear negotiation ploy designed to score him extra money for the next two seasons, there continues to be a legitimate belief that Steve Carell will leave NBC’s “The Office.”
Carell, whose brilliant turn as Michael Scott came full circle in the second season and helped the show transition from a troubled midseason import into NBC’s flagship comedy, maintains that he is eyeing an exit from “The Office” after this coming season.
“I think [season] 7 will be my last year,” Carell told EW about leaving after the upcoming seventh season. “I want to fulfill my contract. I think it’s a good time to move on.”
That is not to say Carell’s rumblings about leaving are any more legitimate than those of Sheen (and that, even if they are legitimate now, they cannot be ‘forgotten’ via a big-time offer for season eight), but he is at least sticking to the story in public statements to the media.
Carell has been able to juggle a movie schedule with his obligations on the Emmy-winning NBC sitcom, and says that his interest in leaving is purely to “spend more time with [his] family.”
While most of the media has run with this story as legitimate proof that Carell is planning his exit, it is impossible to ignore the history of these sorts of statements when doubting that Carell would stick with his television role until the show’s lucrative light on NBC burns out.