[dropcap size=small]E[/dropcap]ight years later, the British comedy series The IT Crowd is officially making its way across the pond to American audiences. NBC is taking another shot at a remake of the extremely popular series after a failed attempt to do so during the 2006-2007 television season, according to a report by Deadline.
After a recent announcement that he is developing a TV adaptation of the Rush Hour film series, producer Bill Lawrence is now behind the American version of The IT Crowd. Lawrence is best known for being the creator of Scrubs and co-creating the sitcoms Spin City, Cougar Town, and Ground Floor along with the animated cult hit Clone High.
Lawrence is working again with Neil Goldman and Garrett Donovan, who both served as executive producers on Scrubs and went on to produce another NBC comedy, Community. Coincidentally NBC’s first attempt at re-working The IT Crowd had Community star Joel McHale in the leading role, a pilot was filmed, and the show was ordered as a midseason replacement. However, this came at the same time that Ben Silverman took over as co-chairman of NBC Entertainment, and the show was subsequently canceled due to his dissatisfaction with the project.
The IT Crowd began airing on Britain’s Channel 4 in 2006 and ran for four seasons plus a one-off special that aired in 2013. The BAFTA-winning series starred Chris O’Dowd (who has since gained notoriety in the U.S. after appearing in Bridesmaids and This is 40) and Richard Ayoade as IT employees of Reynholm Industries, who are managed by their department head (Katherine Parkinson) who has absolutely no understanding of IT.
No casting or production announcements have yet been made for the show’s American counterpart. Stay tuned!
One of my favorite shows of all time. I really hope they don’t mess this up.