SPOILER WARNING!

This post has been updated with the latest season 7 spoilers for ‘The Office’.

SPOILERS:

Sept 3, 2010: Ausiello Files

Question: Any chance Steve Carell might change his mind and stick with The Office for another year? —Sandra

Ausiello: There was a chance, but that ship has long since sailed, according to exec producer Greg Daniels. “We held out a lot of hope at the beginning of the year when it was first coming out that [Steve] might leave,” he tells me. “We didn’t comment on it at the time because we were making a last-ditch effort.” But Carell stuck to his guns, and at this point, Daniels does not anticipate an eleventh-hour reversal. “Steve doesn’t play a lot of games. He said that he wants to [leave] and he’s doing it in a very classy, typical-Steve fashion. I’m 100 percent confident it’s not some kind of ploy. He gave us plenty of lead time to really construct a great exit for him as well as a great ongoing story line for other people.”

Aug 26, 2010: ausiellofiles

Question: Many fans of The Office are concerned that Pam dated Timothy Olyphant’s character post-Roy and pre-Jim. Is this the case? Is Jim just finding out about it now? —Matt

Ausiello: Yes to all of the above! According to executive producer Paul Lieberstein, Pam dated Olyphant while Jim was with Karen. “Everyone in the office makes a big deal of it, and we get into Jim’s jealousy a little bit,” he says. “It bothers him a little.”

Aug 20, 2010: Photos from the set of ‘The Office’

Aug 20, 2010: Ausiello Files

Question: What will happen on The Office now that Dwight owns the building? —Adam

Ausiello: Well, for one thing all the thermostats will be caged, locked, and set to a below-freezing temperature.

Aug 12, 2010: ausiellofiles

Question: Is Jan ever going to come back to The Office? —Jordan

Ausiello: Yes! Melora Hardin will reprise her role as Michael’s former boss/lover in this season’s fourth episode, written and directed by showrunner/costar Paul Lieberstein. “Michael comes in with what he thinks is a pimple, but is revealed to be a cold sore,” explains Lieberstein. “He learns that a cold sore is a form of herpes, and so he gets the idea that he has to contact all the women he’s ever been with to tell them.”

Aug 12, 2010: ausiellofiles

Sources confirm to me exclusively that producers of the NBC hitcom have quietly reached out to rising comic-actors Danny McBride (the breakout star of HBO’s hilarious Eastbound & Down) and Rhys Darby (late of HBO’s Flight of the Conchords) to gauge their interest in joining the cast later this season.

Office showrunner Paul Lieberstein confirms that they’re “having discussions” about introducing a new salesman into Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch, but he wouldn’t say whether this person was being groomed to necessarily replace Carell’s Michael Scott. “We haven’t settled exactly who will take over,” says Lieberstein, adding that promoting a current staffer to the top job remains a viable option as well. (Coexecutive producer Mindy Kaling recently endorsed Rainn Wilson’s Dwight for the gig.)

Aug 7, 2010: Danny Chun’s Twitter

Today was the most fun I’ve ever had on set. Sad it’s over – Jeff Blitz is the man!

Aug 7, 2010: Brian Baumgartner’s Twitter

Exciting happenings on set today. Can’t wait for people to see the season premiere!!

Aug 7, 2010: Maxwell Glick’s Twitter

Off to work at The Office.

Aug 7, 2010: Ausiello Files

Question: Who is Timothy Olyphant playing on The Office? —Jeff

Ausiello: A rival paper salesman with a deep, dark secret: He used to date Pam!

Aug 7, 2010: Zap2it.com

Idris Elba (“The Wire”), who played Charles on seven episodes of “The Office” in 2009, said pretty definitively Saturday (Aug. 7) that the character would not be in the running to take over for Michael: “No, Charles Miner will not be back,” he told reporters at the Television Critics Association summer press tour.

That doesn’t necessarily mean, though, that we’ll never see Charles again. “There is an opportunity for me to sort of intertwine with their storyline toward the season finale,” he says. “So that may happen.”

Aug 2, 2010: Watch With Kristin

Jake from Aspen, Colo.: Any idea what’s happening in Michael Scott’s life since this is his last year at Dunder Mifflin?
What?

Steve Carrell’s leaving the show? Nobody told us! Thank god Angela Kinsey filled us in: “Michael Scott will leave. Which is gonna make for great television, because how’s he gonna leave? Does he get fired? Does he come up with some ridiculous reason to quit?” she spitballs to us during NBC TCA’s press rounds. Michael may be leaving, but not before some people come back, and not just Holly. “Michael gets a medical condition and he has to find his lovers to talk to them about what’s going on. So, we’re going to see Jan [Melora Hardin] coming back,” Angela spills.

Luca in Santa Monica, Calif.: Seriously? The Office without Michael Scott? Can it be done?

His co-stars are all saying that yes, it will happen! “I don’t think it will end at all, because I think there’s so much to keep going,” Ellie says honestly. Angela dittos her cast member. “I really think as a cast, we feel like an ensemble, and the writers write us that way,” Angela tells us. “I know there’s usually a main Michael Scott storyline, but we have such a great group of people, I think that anyone could really step up to take on a bigger role of running Scranton branch.”

Kellie from Las Vegas, Nev.: The Office. I only care about one couple in Scranton: Dwight and Angela. What’s the word?

Babies! No, seriously. “They start this season with a procreation contract. And Angela is very business like, so she’s determined to have her “sex appointments” with Dwight in order for procreation,” Angela tells us. Meaning, Angela flat-out corners Dwight about babies. “She does come up to him and they have a system that I don’t want to reveal, but it’s funny.” We hope it doesn’t involve trading beets for sex. Actually, that’d be kind of awesome…

Gracie in West Lafayette, Ind.: The cutest couple on TV is Andy and Erin from The Office! Is there hope for them?

Hate to break it to you, but after getting the scoop from Ellie Kemper, it doesn’t look so good for Andy and Erin fans. “I’ll tell you, at least in the beginning, I think there is romance for Erin, but not with Andy,” she reluctantly reveals. In that same answer, she also mentions Zach Woods coming on full time, so we can only assume Erin and Gabe will be doing some work outside the office, if you know what I mean. “I think there’s some love between the two of them. I don’t know if I can say too much!” Ellie laughs. Darling, you just said more than enough.

Aug 2, 2010: Hitfix.com’s interview with Paul Lieberstein

We’re going to try to replace Michael Scott in a way that he would be replaced on the show, where they would search for someone new. And we will do it on air.

I want to know what Dunder-Mifflin would do. I think they would take a good look at who’s there, who’s capable. They might try someone. Maybe it will work, maybe it won’t. They might bring in someone from the outside first, and maybe that will work and maybe it won’t. I think a lot of our answers on the show, when we’re confused about what to do, come from trying to protect the honesty of the show.

Craig’s (Robinson) one of the candidates for coming up and being manager.

In our premiere, we deal with nepotism. Michael hires his nephew. He’s not the most conscientious worker. We deal with the office dynamic about that. Timothy Olyphant’s going to come, and he’s going to play this salesman who is just kind of a threat to Dunder-Mifflin. He’s fantastic. He ends up beating out Michael, Dwight and Jim together, and selling at higher prices. So they do a little bit of a sting: they set up a fake company to try to figure out how he sells so well. Michael is going to come in with a cold sore one day, and he’s going to learn that that’s a form of herpes, and he’s going to feel that he has to contact every woman he’s ever been with and let them know that he has herpes.

He’s (Todd Packer) a name that the network has brought up. He’s not being talked about the most.

We will not write them (Jim and Pam)as a TV couple that has TV fights and TV tribulations. So we’re left with digging out some real stuff for them to play, and sometimes it’s a struggle. The little stories that a husband and wife don’t always have a beginning, middle and end like someone chasing someone. But we still find little colors

Mose does come back this year!

Aug 2, 2010: The Examiner interview with Angela Kinsey

I do know that Holly (Amy Ryan) is going to come back a few episodes so that’s going to be interesting. There’s a lot more Dwight and Angela stuff already just in the first week back. It’s kind of fun because we have this procreation contract, and Angela’s really holding him to it! She’s wanting to get preggers! So there’s some really funny stuff with her pressuring him for sex and making appointments for sex and things like that.

What else can I tell you … I know that the whole Erin / Andy thing is going to have a twist, though I’m not sure how. I think it’s going to be interesting now. They’re sort of like this cute couple who is always miscommunicating, and I think that’s going to come into play. Jim and Pam — there’s going to be an episode where [Cecelia] is baptized and everyone weighs in on it. That hopefully won’t be too horribly inappropriate! (Laughs.)

One storyline I left out that is hilarious — there’s an incident where Michael is required to go to counseling with Toby. That’s going to be hilarious because he hates Toby, and now he’s going to have to open up.

July 20, 2010: Melora Hardin’s Twitter

It’s official!!! Jan is gonna be BACK this season!!!!!

July 17, 2010: Zap2it

Lieberstein tells Zap2it that Ryan will appear in a whopping eight episodes. That’s right: you’ll get to see the Holly-Michael magic for a full third of the season.

The groundwork for Holly’s return was laid in last season’s finale, when Michael asked Sabre CEO Jo (Kathy Bates) if she could bring Holly back. The show was preparing for it behind the scenes as well; Lieberstein says the producers were already talking to Ryan when they were writing the finale.

Season 7 will find Jo making good on her promise to Michael, but “Holly is not happy at all about coming back to Scranton.” She’s built a pretty good life with boyfriend A.J. (Rob Huebel — Lieberstein isn’t sure yet if he’ll return as well) and doesn’t want to leave it.

As for Michael’s departure from Dunder Mifflin, Lieberstein says he doesn’t want Carell to leave the show, but at the same time he thinks it presents a chance for “The Office” to refresh itself. “To actually get to write someone out who’s a main character, it’s a cool opportunity. Not that I want Steve to leave, but in the long run” it could benefit the series, he says.

“No one wants to see him go. We still hope he changes his mind,” Lieberstein says of Carell. “But we are forced to imagine ‘The Office’ without him.”

Lieberstein also teased a few stories from the first half of the season. Among them:

- Dwight’s (Rainn Wilson) efforts to buy the building that houses Dunder Mifflin were successful, which Lieberstein says will result in the salesman/beet farmer becoming overworked and open up new avenues for Jim (John Krasinski) to pull pranks.

- Bates will return as Jo in the season premiere, but she’s also starring in NBC’s midseason series “Harry’s Law,” so Lieberstein isn’t sure if she’ll be able to do more than that.

- Jo’s son (who hasn’t been cast yet) will come to Dunder Mifflin as part of a series of “low-level” jobs he’s doing at various units of Sabre.

- Andy (Ed Helms) will perform in a community theater production. “We think it will be ‘Sweeney Todd,’” Lieberstein says.

- We’ll let Lieberstein describe the last one himself: “Michael gets a cold sore, and he finds out that’s [a form of] herpes, so he feels the need to call every woman he’s ever been with and inform them.”

July 15, 2010: AusielloFiles

Question: Though I can’t imagine The Office without Michael Scott, I’m more concerned about Holly and Michael getting their much-needed reunion before he bids adieu. Any chance this will happen? —Meaghan

Ausiello: I’d say there’s a very good chance considering the fact that [exclusive scoop alert!] Amy Ryan (a.k.a. Holly) is not only returning to The Office, but will be playing a sizable role in the show’s upcoming seventh season. “We set her return up in the finale, so it would be the biggest [cop-out] of all time if we didn’t [follow through] on it,” says coexec producer and cast member Mindy Kaling. “She’s definitely coming back.”

July 8 2010: TV Guide

How will they explain Steve Carell’s departure from The Office? — Lowell

MICKEY: Well, obviously it’s still very early, but our mole tells us that one plan reunites Michael with his “soupsnake,” Holly, over the course of Carell’s final season and then transfers them both back to Nashua. Here’s the interesting part: In this scenario, nobody would replace Carell in the cast. Instead, the already large and talented ensemble would step up to fill the void, with Jim and Dwight’s back-and-forth taking center stage. But maybe talented British actor Ricky Gervais is available?

July 8, 2010: Watch With Kristin

Neil in Santa Fe, N.M: Please tell me that Holly will be back on The Office next season!

Michael needs his other half. How about I promise that another ex will be back? Is that the same? No? Well, take what you can get because Jan is about to be all up in Dunder Mifflin, er, Sabre next season. “I am going to be back,” Melora Hardin happily tells us. “I’m going to be doing a guest-starring thing next year.” A guest-starring thing? Perhaps that means more than one episode, but whatever it means, we hope this thing involves another inappropriate baby shower. Also, since we now know Steve is serious about leaving The Office, can we please get Holly Flak back ASAP?!

Tags: Spoilers