Netflix is about to lose one of its most-watched titles.
Sadly for subscribers in the UK, there are just over three weeks left to watch the US version of The Office, which will be removed from the service on 1 January 2023.
The Office has been one of Netflix's most successful licensed titles for years.
Its removal in the US, in November 2020, saw the streamer lose its most-watched TV show: in 2018, a Nielsen report revealed that subscribers clocked up more minutes watching The Office than any other series.
To put this into perspective, the streaming service once paid a staggering $100m to keep Friends for just one year – and that show didn’t even come close to being streamed in the US the same number of times as the Steve Carell series.
The removal from Netflix has been expected since June 2019 when NBC, the network that aired The Office, announced it would exclusively air the show on Peacock, its very own streaming service, for five years.
This came into effect from 1 January 2021 meaning The Office won't be back on Netflix, in any territory, until at least 2026.
What’s On Netflix reports that The Office will also be removed from Netflix in the following countries: Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey. However, in these countries, it will be removed one day earlier, on 31 December 2022.
The Office has built up a strong fan base over the years.
It first began as an adaptation of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s BBC series, but took on a life of its own thanks to its ensemble, which includes Jenna Fischer, John Krasinski and Rainn Wilson.
In an interview with The Independent, Krasinski said he would be up for a reunion.
“I would totally do it,” he said. “I can genuinely say I’ve never been in anything like it. We all look forward to the day we can do it again. Hopefully, we can find a way.”
Find the full list of every movie and TV series being removed from Netflix this month here.
