Mindy Kaling has reflected on the legacy of The Office (US), claiming that many of its characters would be “cancelled” today.
The series – adapted from Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s seminal British sitcom of the same name – ran from 2005 to 2013.
Kaling played Kelly Kapoor in 157 episodes of the show, also serving as a writer, executive producer, and director.
During an appearance on Good Morning America last week, Kaling was asked when she would allow her children (Katherine, four, and two-year-old Spencer) to watch the series.
“I kind of think maybe never,” she responded. “That show was so inappropriate. We always talk about – the writers I’m still in touch with – we talk about how so much of that show we probably couldn’t make now.
“Tastes have changed and honestly what offends people has changed so much now. I think that it’s one of the reasons the show is popular because there’s something kind of fearless about it or taboo that it talks about on the show.”
She continued: “I think when [my kids are] teenagers they’ll probably want to. Seems like a 15-year-old boy is the biggest fan of The Office right now.”
Kaling was then asked what she thought her character would be doing in the year 2022.
“I think she probably would have quit Dunder Mifflin to be an influencer and then probably would have been cancelled almost immediately,” she quipped.
“Most of the characters on that show probably would be cancelled.”
Back in 2020, an episode of The Office was edited on streaming services to remove a scene in which a character was seen wearing blackface.
The sequence in question featured in “Dwight Christmas”, the ninth episode of the show’s ninth season.
