A Reboot Of The Office Might Happen, But No Chance For Seinfeld Or Friends

The "reboot genre" is a big one on TV these days. The latest example is ABC's Roseanne, which returned last week after 20 years to a massive rating and tons of interest. What other reboot projects could happen in the future? NBC chairman Bob Greenblatt told The Hollywood Reporter this week that revivals of the beloved workplace comedy The Office and the political drama The West Wing are among those being considered at the network.

According to THR, a potential reboot of The Office wouldn't have the full original cast. The show lost star Steve Carell for its final seasons, and many fans remarked that the show's quality dropped over time. THR estimated that The West Wing has "favorable odds" to come back--a show about politics in 2018 could probably do pretty well. Greenblatt said West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin might be interested, but cautioned that it might be too much to ask given that Sorkin is "busy doing 10 other extraordinary things."

As for NBC shows that are less likely to return, Greenblatt said you shouldn't expect Cheers to come back. Cheers ended its run in 1993, and Greenblatt said might be too late for it to have an impact again for a new audience. Cheers star Ted Danson is, however, already working with NBC again for the comedy The Good Place.

Then there are reboots that are basically guaranteed never to happen. Greenblatt said a reboot of Friends has zero chance of happening, while Seinfeld is also extremely unlikely to return. "We can't just reboot everything," he said.

One of the difficulties of rebooting these shows is that they would be very expensive from a salary standpoint, not to mention the production costs. "The actors want a lot more money than we're willing to pay them," Greenblatt explained.

In December, TV Line reported that The Office is coming back. The new version will reportedly feature a combination of returning cast members and newcomers. Once again, it would take place at Dunder Mifflin's office in Scranton, PA. Carell is apparently not involved, with a search underway to find someone to play the boss.

What TV show reboots would you like to see? Let us know in the comments below!