A new remake of the cult mockumentary The Office where characters’ genders were seemingly “swapped” caused outrage on social media. The original The Office (UK) featured Ricky Gervais’ David Brent, the US version had Steve Carell’s Michael Scott. But now, The Office Australia has introduced Hannah Howard, portrayed by Felicity Ward.
Taking to its official YouTube page on Tuesday (September 17), Prime Video AU & NZ dropped the trailer of the latest version of The Office, announcing: “New Office. New Aussie Boss.”
The trailer, which has amassed over 653,000 views, opens with new lead character Hannah Howard. She visibly manages the fictional Sydney packaging company, Flinley Craddick.
In the original British sitcom, David Brent manages Wernham Hogg, a fictional paper merchant located in the Slough Trading Estate in Berkshire.
Another remake of the cult mockumentary The Office caused outrage on social media
In The Office US, Michael Scott is the boss for Dunder Mifflin Paper Company in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
The new trailer sees quirky boss Hannah telling her employees that she has some good news to share, “As of today, we are back in the office full time,” referencing the post-Covid-19 end of lockdown restrictions.
Hannah is subsequently met with grumpy colleagues and awkward close ups. Later in the trailer, the Aussie can be seen celebrating the Melbourne Cup with the office in dazzling attire and oversized hats with feathered fascinators – a classic nod to Australian culture, according to Sky News Australia.
The new trailer goes on to touch on gender bias in the workplace, as Hannah announces: “Promoting women into positions of power — that’s my mantra, really. My back hurts from carrying all my sisters all the time.”
While the original The Office had Mackenzie Crook’s Gareth Keenan, and The Office US featured Rainn Wilson’s Dwight Schrute, the Aussie version introduced Lizzie, played by Edith Poor.
Nevertheless, the popular TV show’s changes were met with significant backlash, as The Office fans were quick to flock to the comments to air their grievances.
In this new version, the characters’ genders were seemingly “swapped”
A YouTube user wrote: “I have been confined to a wheelchair for the past 20 years, today I stood up and walked just to turn this off.”
A person penned: “Dear Prime. It’s not too late to delete this.”
“And we thought the Break Dancing was the worst Australia would put out this year,” a netizen shared in reference to Rachael “Raygun” Gunn’s controversial performance at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
A seperate individual chimed in: “I can already tell this is going to get cancelled after the first season.”
As per IMDb, The Office Australia’s storyline reads: “Hannah Howard is the managing director of Flinley Craddick.
“When she gets news that her branch will be shut down to work remotely, she goes into survival mode, making promises she can’t keep in order to keep her ‘work family’ together.”
The Office Australia has introduced Hannah Howard, portrayed by Felicity Ward
Meanwhile, the storyline for the US version of The Office reads: “A mediocre paper company in the hands of Scranton, PA branch manager Michael Scott.
“This mockumentary follows the everyday lives of the manager and the employees he ‘manages.’
“The crew follows the employees around 24/7 and captures their quite humorous and bizarre encounters as they will do what it takes to keep the company thriving.”
The trailer opens with new lead character Hannah Howard
The original The Office storyline states: “A team of colleagues who cannot stand each other face all types of challenges and difficulties and issues and situations of the workplace.
“Along the way, they all do their best not to combine their careers with their personal lives and see who is the better worker.”
The Aussie version of The Office premieres October 18 on Prime Video.
The new trailer continued to ignite negative feedback
