Netflix UK have reversed the removal of one of its most-watched titles

Netflix UK have reversed a decision to remove one of its most-watched titles at the last minute.

Back in December, it was confirmed that the US version of The Office was set to leave Netflix UK in January 2023. 

It follows an announcement in 2019 that saw NBC, the original home of The Office, confirm plans to exclusively host the sitcom on its own streaming service, Peacock. The deal was set to last five years.

In 2020, The Office was removed from Netflix US. A Nielson report revealed that the show was streamed for more than 57 billion minutes in the USA the previous year, making it the most streamed show of the year.

Alongside the UK, it was also reported that the start of 2023 would see The Office leave Netflix in the following countries: Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey.

However, according to WhatsOnNetflix, the streamer has struck a last-minute deal to keep the show on Netflix for an additional 2 years.

It now means that UK and many European viewers have until January 2025 to watch (or rewatch) The Office.

The news comes shortly after The Office star Mindy Kaling said she thinks “so much” of the show is “inappropriate” now. The actor, who played Kelly Kapoor in the NBC sitcom, explained that she and the other writers have said they “probably” wouldn’t be able to make the show today.

“That show is so inappropriate now,” Kaling said on Good Morning America. “The writers who I’m still in touch with now, we always talk about how so much of that show we probably couldn’t make now.”

It comes after co-creator Ricky Gervais previously said that the show would fall victim to ‘cancel culture’ if it aired today. The same year, NBC said it was “standing by” to reboot The Office.