From The Office to Ten Percent: why some remakes soar (and others suck)

‘It’s a big responsibility’ … will Ten Percent be a hit like Call My Agent!? Photograph: Amazon

There are good remakes, and then there are ones so brilliant the US president sends personal congratulations. The American version of The Office might be the greatest TV remake of all time – and the moment that cemented its success was when Barack Obama got in touch.

“Steve Carrell [who plays Michael Scott] came in with this letter,” remembered actor Oscar Nunez in the 2021 book Welcome to Dunder Mifflin: The Ultimate Oral History of The Office. “He was like: ‘You guys might want to read this.’ It said something like: ‘Dear Steve, I just want you to know that at the White House, The Office Thursday is family night.’”