The Paper may be taking a page out of The Office’s book, but Dunder Mifflin feels like a world away.
Set in a fictional Ohio newsroom, The Paper centers around publisher Ned (Domhnall Gleeson) and the staff of struggling journalists working for newspaper The Truth Teller. The employees — which includes Dunder Mifflin’s beloved accountant Oscar (Oscar Nuñez) and several newbies — are followed by the same documentary crew from The Office.
“We were really excited that the main connective tissue was that the same documentary crew was looking for a new story,” cocreator Greg Daniels exclusively shared with Us Weekly ahead of the show’s Thursday, September 4, premiere. “For them to find something which they considered to be a new story, we wanted to set it in a different world.”
But the similarities stop there. Daniels, who was the former showrunner and creator of The Office, noted that The Paper delves into the world of journalism — which meant (mostly) new characters outside of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
“As writers, when we came up with the characters for the world, we were really hopeful to find other observed types of people that weren’t the same source of weirdos from the original show,” Daniels, 62, explained. “We’re trying to have different weirdos and new weirdos.”
Cocreator Michael Koman, who is married to The Office alum Ellie Kemper, noted that the two comedies also showcase different lines of work — and contrasting levels of passion.
Watch This ‘The Office’ OG Return in 1st Look at ‘The Paper’ Spinoff
“If the original documentary was exploring this sort of unrewarding life where you have to find your joy in other places, I think this is about the kind of work that might give you something in return that you can love and feel good about,” Koman, 48, exclusively told Us, while Daniels added that the characters “might actually stay late because they love what they do.”
Ramona Young, who stars as reporter Nicole, agreed that there’s “a lot of motivation” behind the characters on The Paper who are trying to “keep a local newspaper alive.”
“There’s deadlines at stake,” Young, 27, explained exclusively to Us. “There’s losing your job — that’s high stakes.”
Nuñez, 66, knows firsthand that the problems on The Paper are “very different” compared to The Office, which he starred on for nine seasons from 2005 to 2013. This time around, Nuñez also has one hope for his character — and it’s not about embracing the documentary crew filming him at his 9 to 5.
“It’s a new city for him,” Nuñez exclusively told Us. “I like to think he got paid more.”
The Paper season 1 is streaming now on Peacock.
