Michael Scott Will Not Return to Dunder-Mifflin

One of my favorite TV shows of the last few years has been the American version of The Office. Seasons 1-5 were awesome but over the last few seasons the show has slipped a little bit. Put me in the camp of people saying, "Jim and Pam getting married and having a kid ruined the show". I don't know why but for some reason that whole story arc made me hate both those characters. The series also should have ended when Steve Carell left the show. As an avid viewer I just felt that the Office at the point had run it's course, everything after that point just seemed like a slow death march to nowhere. Sure, there were a few funny moments after Michael left, like when Toby got picked to be on the jury of the Scranton Strangler and his fascination with it. James Spader's short run was great and Andy taking over the Scranton branch was good too but all those things just seemed forced and didn't really do much for me. Of course, this is just my opinion. So I was super bummed when I read that Steve Carell won't be returning for the final episodes. This report has been making the rounds the past few months and part of me thinks it's all a ploy to throw us off the scent of a surprise Michael Scott return but the other part of me thinks the last 2 seasons have been so bad that it makes sense to leave out one of the main characters and not bring him back for a little cameo. Rumor is the last few episodes will resemble the British version, a "Where Are They Now" type episode that will include some of  the office workers finally getting a chance to see the show they've been apart of for all these years. NBC executives have said not to get your hopes up over Carell returning,
“He left in the way he wanted to leave, and he and Greg talked about it, and I don’t think he will. There’s maybe a little Hail Mary pass on a cameo, but I think the decision would be compromising his schedule.”

Deadline Hollywood has the story