‘The Office Australia’ Ordered By Prime Video With Female-led Australian Series
First, we had the UK’s David Brent, then came the US’s Michael Scott… Now, Prime Video is bringing us Aussie Hannah Howard in ‘The Office Australia‘, a new Australian comedy series from the global hit juggernaut franchise ‘The Office’.
The series follows Hannah Howard (Felicity Ward – ‘Wakefield’, ‘The Inbetweeners 2’), the managing director of packaging company Flinley Craddick. When she gets news from Head Office that they will be shutting down her branch and making everyone work from home, she goes into survival mode, making promises she can’t keep in order to keep her “work family” together. The staff of Flinley Craddick indulge her and must endure Hannah’s outlandish plots as they work toward the impossible targets that have been set for them.
“I’m very excited about Australia remaking my little show from the turn of the century,” said Ricky Gervais, co-creator, co-writer, and star of The Office. “Office politics have changed a bit in 20 years, so can’t wait to see how they navigate a modern-day David Brent.”
It was over 20 years ago that the world was introduced to the wonderfully bleak mockumentary world of The Office, created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. While many aspects of the workplace have changed since then, especially post-2020, the physical office is a timeless precinct for comedy. The BAFTA and Golden Globe-winning cult comedy has already been remade for audiences around the world, including France, Canada, Chile, Israel, India, the Middle East, and Poland, where a third series has just been announced. This Australian version will be its 13th adaptation.
“We are thrilled to be bringing one of the biggest comedy franchises ever made to Prime Video customers in Australia and around the world,” adds Sarah Christie, senior development executive Prime Video Australia. “It is an honour to continue the international comedy legacy of The Office locally while introducing new, quintessentially Australian characters. We can’t wait for audiences to meet Hannah Howard, the first female boss The Office format has explored.”
Production on the eight-part series will commence in Sydney, Australia in June, with filming to take place over eight weeks. In addition to Felicity Ward’s Hannah Howard, ‘The Office Australia’ stars Edith Poor (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The Power of the Dog), Steen Raskopoulos (The Duchess, Feel Good), Shari Sebbens (The Sapphires, Thor: Love and Thunder), Josh Thomson (How to Please a Woman, Young Rock), Jonny Brugh (Thor: Love and Thunder, What We Do in the Shadows), Pallavi Sharda (The Twelve), Susan Ling Young (Reckoning, Hungry Ghosts), Raj Labade, Lucy Schmit, and Firass Dirani (Underbelly, House Husbands).
‘The Office Australia’ is co-produced by BBC Studios ANZ, Bunya Entertainment, and Amazon Studios, and is based on a BBC Studios format. The Office Australia is executive produced by Julie De Fina (Aftertaste), Jackie van Beek (The Breaker Upperers, What We Do in the Shadows, Wellington Paranormal), and Kylie Washington, with lead producers Sophia Zachariou (The Moth Effect, The Chaser’s War on Everything, Gruen, The Checkout), Linda Micsko (The Letdown, Laid), and Greer Simpkin (Mystery Road, In Limbo). Van Beek serves as lead set-up director with De Fina as head writer. Christiaan Van Vuuren (Bondi Hipsters, A Sunburnt Christmas, Dom and Adrian) and Jesse Griffin (Educators) will also direct on the series.
“To me, Wernham Hogg’s David Brent was a leading light in comedy. The Office UK made the mockumentary form available to a wide audience, and that was its sheer brilliance,” commented Sophia Zachariou, producer and co-managing director, Bunya Entertainment. “I can only hope that global audiences find our Aussie take on The Office as funny, self-deprecating, and believable as those that have gone before it.”
‘The Office Australia‘ will launch in 2024 on Prime Video UK and globally (excluding the U.S.) in more than 240 countries and territories.
