The ‘workplace mockumentary’ is synonymous with The Office – both the Ricky Gervais-led UK version that first aired in 2001, and the US series starring Steve Carrell that premiered in 2005. Now, Australia has released an interpretation of the sitcom that follows a hilariously amusing boss (who’s sometimes egotistical and sometimes just clueless) and the workplace shenanigans that take place amongst their entertaining staff.
It’s also the first time the franchise features a female protagonist as the boss, with Felicity Ward taking on the lead role of Hannah Howard, the Managing Director of packaging company Flinley Craddick. While this is a monumental moment for female representation on the screen, it could also be the reason the show has faced much social media backlash in the lead up to its release.
“I don’t read anything, and don’t Google my name. I don’t Google the show. I don’t look at comments underneath anything,” Ward tells Missing Perspectives.
Despite not sighting the wave of criticism herself, the comedian is confident that the barrage of backlash is linked to gender in some respect. The expectations to deliver to an existing fanbase of a popular sitcom are already high. On top of that, women are often held to higher standards to begin with.
“I’m not like, ‘Oh women have got it so hard’. But after this interview, literally go choose any comedian that’s a woman in the world. Go on YouTube, read the comments. It just happens,” Ward tells me.
“If you get pushed to the front and you’re a woman, or if you stand at the front and you’re a woman, there’s people that are very angry about us – just in general, just in life.”
Photo: John Platt / Prime Video
For decades, female comedians have been accused of not being as funny as their male counterparts. It’s as tiring as it is boring, yet we continually hear this. And perhaps, negative commentary about The Office’s trailer is testament to how this view is still widely held.
“When I was younger, I absolutely had internalised misogyny. I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t like when when female comics joke about dot, dot dot,’” reflects Ward, who has been doing comedy for almost two decades.
“Why? Why the fuck do you care what they joke about? Is it funny? That’s all you have to ask – do you find it funny? If you don’t find it funny, I’ve got some great news. You do not have to watch, isn’t that wonderful?”
Ward recalls a comedy show she did in 2010 for a breast cancer fundraiser. It featured an all-female lineup and was “the only time two women used to be on a bill together”, she says. She estimates a 600-strong crowd of probably three men in attendance. The audience reaction was sensational with continuous laughing.
“This woman said the most simple thing that just blew my mind,” says Ward. “She goes, ‘Well, who do you laugh with more than your girlfriends? I was like, ‘You don’t laugh with anyone as hard as you laugh with your girlfriends’.
“So when people are saying women aren’t funny, I’m like, ‘You need some new friends,’” she laughs. “Women are heaps funny.”
Despite any external pressure or noise, Ward is extremely proud of this version of The Office that features a diverse Australian cast including the likes of Felicity Ward, Edith Poor, Shari Sebbens, Steen Raskopoulos, Josh Thomson, Jonny Brugh, Lucy Schmidt, Susan Ling Young, Raj Labade, Zoe Terakes, Pallavi Sharda and Claude Jabbour.
“I’m trying to be zen about it, like I can’t change anything. I’m really proud of the show,” she says. “It was the greatest job I’ll ever have in my life. I don’t know if I will have a more fun job, so just where my focus is.
“It was glorious. The cast are incredible, the scripts are really funny, and then you just sort of give it to the universe and let other people have their opinions.”
The Office will be available to stream worldwide (excluding the US) on Prime Video on October 18.