Here’s Why Steve Carell Didn’t Want to Return for ‘The Office’ Series Finale

Steve Carell wasn’t keen on reprising his role of Michael Scott on The Office a full two seasons after his character left Scranton seemingly for good, but when Greg Daniels was planning Dwight and Angela’s wedding, he really wanted Michael to come.

To most fans of The Office, the moment Michael Scott left Dunder Mifflin and the Electric City to be with his soulmate Holly Flax in Colorado at the end of the Season Seven finale “Goodbye, Michael” was the spiritual end of the series, and the two extra seasons of what was ostensibly situational comedy was something in between an unwanted, straight-to-video sequel and an elaborate, high-production-value fan fiction based on the series. As the beating heart of both Dunder Mifflin and The Office itself, Michael found both growth and closure during his final season on the sitcom, and his tearful farewell and Irish goodbye in his final episode couldn’t possibly have capped off Carell’s powerhouse performance any better.

Then, after “Goodbye, Michael,” two more seasons of The Office happened. By the time Season Nine came to a close and the rest of the plot lines approached their terminus, so much had changed at Dunder Mifflin that incorporating Michael into the new office politics was an impossible task, and Carell initially wasn’t up for the challenge when Daniels tapped him for a finale cameo.

During the most recent episode of The Office Ladies Podcast, Jenna Fischer explained that Carell initially resisted returning to the show because he “felt like Michael’s story had really ended” when he first left The Office — it felt like the show had really ended, too.

“It was Greg’s idea to have Steve come back,” Fischer explained of Carell’s cameo in the final episode, though The Office’s biggest star wasn’t nearly as eager to return to his most beloved role. “(Daniels) had wanted that for a very long time, and he asked (Carell) pretty early in Season Nine.”

“But Steve was reluctant. He felt like Michael’s story had really ended,” Fischer continued. “He didn’t want to open it back up again, and he especially did not wanna come back after two years and have this finale episode be about him. Steve really felt like, ‘My character had his ending.’ This is everybody else's ending, and he didn't wanna overshadow that.”

Angela Kinsey, whose self-titled character’s wedding served as the conclusion of The Office, concurred. “Well, he’s very gracious that way,” Kinsey said of Carell’s deference.

“Greg had the idea of the final episode being Dwight and Angela’s wedding, and Steve agreed Michael would be there,” Fischer said of the in-universe justification for the cameo.

“I believe that. I believe Michael would wanna be there for Dwight and Angela,” Kinsey added.

Critically, Carell’s cameo was kept secret from certain members of the Office cast and crew, and Kinsey had no warning about Carell’s return. “It was really hard not to tell you,” Fischer told her co-star. “And you did not find out until he showed up on set that day.”

Kinsey clearly remembers the “exact moment” she learned of Carell’s presence, saying, “The set PA turned to me and said, ‘Steve is here.’ ... I said, ‘What?’ And I opened the door, and there he was — he was sitting in hair and makeup.”

Apparently, that run-in went better than the last time Carell barged in on one of his employees doing hair and makeup on the day of her wedding — hopefully it was less “pungent,” too.