The Office creator Greg Daniels and star Steve Carell will reunite for a new Netflix sitcom, Space Force, that parodies President Trump’s proposed military branch of the same name. The duo co-created the series and will executive produce; Carell will star in the show, and Daniels will serve as showrunner.
The streaming service previewed the project with a sci-fi-aping teaser that outlines the plot. “On June 18th, 2018, the federal government announced the creation of a sixth major division of the United States Armed Forces,” reads overlaid text. “The goal of the new branch is ‘to defend satellites from attack’ and ‘perform other space-related tasks. Or something. This is the story of the men and women who have to figure it out.”
Netflix has yet to announce the show’s episode count or premiere date. Space Force marks the pair’s first project together since the U.S. version of The Office; Carell starred in the show as protagonist Michael Scott for seven of its nine seasons; Daniels served as showrunner for the first four seasons and returned for its ninth and final installment.
Space Force marks Carell’s second major TV project announcement in recent months; in October, he signed on as a co-star of an Apple morning show drama alongside Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. Since leaving The Office in 2011, he’s focused primarily on film projects, including 2018 roles in Vice, Welcome to Marwen and Beautiful Boy.
In addition to his work on The Office, Daniels co-created King of the Hill and Parks and Recreation. The fine-time Emmy winner previously wrote for The Simpsons and Saturday Night Live, among other programs.
Trump unveiled his initial idea for a Space Force in June. “I’m hereby directing the Department of Defense and Pentagon to immediately begin the process necessary to establish a Space Force as the sixth branch of the armed forces,” the president said at a White House event. “That’s a big statement.” Six months later, he signed a memo ordering the Pentagon to establish the “Space Command,” a precursor to the Space Force.
(Excerpt) Read more in: RollingStone