Our beloved television comedy stars Jason Segel (How I Met Your Mother) and Ed Helms (The Office) share the big screen for the upcoming indie film, Jeff, Who Lives At Home.

Directed by Jay and Mark Duplass who have received a lot of hype from their last film Cyrus with John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill and Marissa Tomei – but this could likely seal their mainstream success. It continues Duplass’ theme of family dysfunction with Segel as a naive mopey slacker named Jeff living in his mother’s basement searching for the meaning of life. He reconnects with his brother Pat (Helms) who soon discovers that his wife is having an affair – meanwhile, their mother (Susan Sarandon) is depressed. Holy dramedy, Batman!

It looks to be in the same vain as Helms’ Cedar Rapids or Segel’s Forgetting Sarah Marshall rather than their other efforts – it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival to great reviews and is due in theatres nationwide on March 16th.

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Josh Groban will be cast as Ed Helms’ (Andy’s) brother on the upcoming season of The Office.

E! Online reports there is no confirmation on how many episodes Josh will appear in the show. However, based on his appearance in Glee, he should be hilarious playing Helms’ brother. We hope to see  a sing off.

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So it’s official that James Spader will be joining The Office. He will be playing Robert California, who is initially hired to replace Michael Scott, but quickly becomes the top boss, reports LA Times.

“James will reprise his role as Robert California, this uber-salesman that has a power to convince and manipulate, like a high-class weirdo Jedi warrior,” said series regular Paul Lieberstein, one of the series’ executive producers.

“He’ll have been hired over the summer as the new manager, but within hours, got himself promoted. Within days, he took over the company. James has an energy that is completely his own, and ‘The Office’ has no tools for dealing with this guy,” Lieberstein added. “We’re thrilled he’s joining our cast.”

We thought his “initial interview” on The Office was cute, but we are skeptical he can carry this role.

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Jim Carrey is set to make a guest-appearance on the season 7 finale of “The Office” alongside the star-studded fiesta that includes Ricky Gervais, Will Ferrell, Will Arnett, James Spader, Ray Romano and Catherine Tate.

We all know that this is the last season for Steve Carrell’s Michael Scott and the above-mentioned actors are all potential replacements to fill his management position at the beloved Dunder Mifflin. But, sorry to shatter the fantasy, but there is very little likeliness that any of these big names will reprise their roles after the finale.

In recent interviews, Gervais, who has co-created the series and its original British version, has said that Arnett should be made a regular character on the show. Rainn Wilson, who plays Dwight Schrute, told Entertainment Weekly that Ferrell is “not expected to replace Carell on the show permanently”.

Should be an interesting toss-up and will definitely make for good television to see Ron Burgundy duke it out with Ace Ventura and Gob Bluth. Tune in next Thursday on NBC.

Who do you think would make the best boss?

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Although there still isn’t any word on who’s going to replace  Michael Scott at Dunder Mifflin, we do know the names of the potential candidates.

With the loss of Steve Carrell, the series will compensate with a star-studded ending to the show’s seventh season.

Ricky Gervais and Will Arnett were announced as guest stars in March, while earlier this month, Ray Romano, James Spader and Catherine Tate were revealed to be joining the show as well. Will Ferrell, will also be joining the cast for the final four episodes as D’Angelo Vickers, the temporary boss.

Show star and writer Mindy Kaling has also let fans in on some juicy details about the show’s season finale via Twitter on Tuesday, revealing the names of the guest stars’ characters.

“William Arnett plays ‘Fred Henry’, Raymond Romano plays ‘Merv Bronte’, and James Spader plays ‘Robert California’. These are real, guys,” she tweeted.

Kaling then added, “Catherine ‘The Great’ Tate is Nellie Bertrum. (Again, real.)”

If you think the names are silly, Kaling says the process of creating them was just as fun.

“Naming new characters is one of the most fun times in a writers room, as @KenTremendous can attest. Takes a tiny, silly part of the brain!” Kaling wrote, referring to Michael Schur, a former writer for the series and co-creator of “Parks and Recreation.”

While no one will ever replace Carrell, the announcement of these guest stars sure make up for the loss of Michael Scott,.

I really hope the hype is worth it because with such comedic talents lined up to guest star, I will be looking forward to having a good laugh from upcoming episodes!

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We hope this is for real!!

Perez Hilton reports that the Office’s most recent buzzed-about guest star, Will Ferrell, could be written into the show as a permanent character to replace Steve Carell. Ferrell confirmed the story with a reporter at last weekend’s Comedy awards, but we all know Will is the master of deadpan and could be totally joking about the whole thing!

Ferrell said: “Yes, I’m taking over. My character’s name is Deangelo Vickers, he loves the American Southwest, and he’s just kind of in his own way going to step into Michael Scott’s shoes and try to fill them. I’m friends with Steve and a fan of the show, and I just selfishly wanted to do one episode with him, and they pitched multiple ones, and I said, ‘That’d be great.’”

It’s impossible to tell whether Ferrell was being serious or not without some sort of footage, none of which has emerged just yet.

What do you think? Would you be stoked to see Will Ferrell become the new face of The Office?

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Earlier this year, it was announced that Will Ferrell (of Will Ferrell) landed a guest spot on The Office.

Ferrell is rumoured to play another branch manager from the home office that is just as incompetent and dumb witted as Steve Carell’s character, Michael Scott.

He agreed to the appearance to mark the loss of Carell’s farewell. The two have appeared together and harmonized over ‘Afternoon Delight’ in the comedy classic, Anchoman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. He will appear in four episodes, and Rainn Wilson, who plays Dwight Schrute in the series, could not be happier.

“We’ve been doing a ton with Will Ferrell, and it is so cool,” he said. “I just keep thinking, ‘I’m acting with Will Ferrell! This is so awesome!’ And he’s the nicest guy: just a sweetheart and so much fun.”

Could Ferrell potentially replace Carell??

“He is the new manager that Michael Scott has brought in to replace him, but we kind of swiftly realise that that’s a terrible idea. Terrible,” Wilson reported to MTV News.

This could be very interesting.

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With the most beloved character, Michael Scott, and actor on ‘The Office,” Steve Carell, leaving NBC had to do something so that Carell will go out with a bang. Therefore, NBC hired on Will Ferrell to reunite with his Anchorman co-star for the end of the season.

According to InsideTV.EW.Com, Ferrell will have a four episode run and will be playing a branch manager who arrives from the home office and is entirely incompetent just like Michael Scott. Three episodes will feature both Carell and Farrell as Carell is leaving four episodes before the season’s finale.

We’ve seen the hilarity that ensues when Ferrell and Carell play alongside each other. “The Office” should prove to be no different as the actors have a natural comedic chemistry. Ferrell will also help to boost the shows ratings and perhaps draw an even bigger audience due to his popularity.

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It’s been very well publicized that Steve Carell’s character Michael Scott on “The Office” would be killed off this season. But what is shocking is the timing.

Michael Scott apparently will not last the entire season, and will be killed off before the finale in May. Why? The last weeks of the season will see the crew at Dunder-Mifflin “scrambling to replace him,” according to the Huffington Post.

Michael Scott’s last scenes will probably air in April. However Steve Carell will be keeping busy with an onslaught of movie rolls and he will be both a nominee and a presenter at this year’s Golden Globes.

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So incompetent bosses and workplaces aren’t unique to the Western world it turns out. The New York Post reports that Gervais is taking “The Office” to China with a Chinese version of the popular program.

“I have some amazing news,” Gervais wrote on his blog. “We are about to start work on developing a Chinese ‘The Office.’ How cool is that?”

Gervais also confirmed that he will not be taking over for Steve Carell on NBC’s “The Office” after the next season.

“I’m not taking over from Steve Carell and will just continue to make millions for doing f*** all,” he wrote, “because I created the show and all the characters, and own the format and it’s being syndicated now and I get paid every time any episode of any version is played anywhere in the world.”

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Steve Carell will be leaving his post as Michael Scott on NBC’s hit show “The Office” after the upcoming season. When asked last night by Craig Ferguson why he was leaving, Carell explained he didn’t know the answer. He later rebuffed saying it was to spend more time with his family.

“Honestly, to spend more time with my family,” said the actor. Ferguson replied, “That’s usually what politicians say when they’re caught doing something with their pee-pees … He says, ‘Well, I’m retiring, but not because of what you think — just to spend a little more time with my family.’

Definitely the show will be different without the legendary Michael Scott. Anybody have any views on how writers will get rid of the Michael Scott character?

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America’s favorite receptionist Jenna Fischer from “The Office” has married over the weekend, reports UsMagazine.com.

Fischer married TV writer Lee Kirk, who she has been engaged to since the Summer of 2008. In attendance was “The Office” co-star Rainn Wilson, who took to Twitter right after the ceremony.

“Went to the most beautiful wedding I’ve ever experienced,” Wilson tweeted. “Total Love, Jenna Fischer & Lee Kirk!

This is the second marriage for Fischer, who wed director James Gunn in 2000. They  divorced in 2007.

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It’s been a long road for Steve Carell and Michael Scott, but their time on “The Office” looks like it’s coming to an end.

E! News reports Carell has confirmed he will be leaving the NBC sitcom after Season 7. He made these comments at the red carpet premiere for “Despicable Me.”

“I just think it’s time,” Carell said on the red carpet. “I want to fulfill my contract. When I first signed on I had a contract for seven seasons, and this coming year is my seventh. I just thought it was time for my character to go.”

Now can the show continue without Michael Scott? Isn’t it like Seinfeld without Jerry Seinfeld?

“It doesn’t certainly mean the end of the show. I think it’s just a dynamic change to the show, which could be a good thing, actually. Add some new life and some new energy…I see it as a positive in general for the show,” Carell said.

So who will replace Michael Scott as the Regional Manager of Dunder Mifflin Infinity? Should they hire (or cast) someone new? Or promote within?

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Sitcom television isn’t having much luck – and it looks like Steve Carell is following in the footsteps of Charlie Sheen. Yes, it’s true – there may be no Michael Scott in the popular sitcom The Office after next season.

During an interview with BBC, Carell dropped the horrible bomb that he may not be re-signing his contract next year.

When the interviewer asked, “How long will you stay with The Office for? How many more [seasons]? How long does your contract run?” Carell responded, “Contract through next season.”

When he was asked “And will you stay after that?” the 47-year-old actor responded, “I don’t think so. I think that will probably be my last year.”

Well, at least he said, “think,” so there may still be hope. Perhaps it was part of a negotiation tactic, and Michael Scott will alive and well in the Scranton branch. NBC has yet to comment on the interview.

It is almost impossible to imagine The Office without the immature, inappropriate and absolutely hilarious Michael Scott.

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The laugh-out-loud, documentary-style look at the professional and personal lives of the employees of struggling paper supplier Dunder Mifflin, The Office: Season Five comes to Blu-ray(TM) Hi-Def and DVD on September 8, 2009 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment – the first of the hilarious series to be presented on Blu-ray(TM) Hi-Def! All 26 hilarious Season Five episodes of the Primetime Emmy(R) Award-winning series–including two extended episodes–come together in a must-own five-disc collectible set with hours of hysterically funny bonus features, deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes interviews.

In addition, fans have a chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get up close and personal with the cast and crew of their favorite television show. Two DVD copies of The Office: Season Five hold hidden “Golden Dunder Mifflin Tickets,” which entitle the lucky finders and their guests to a trip to Los Angeles to visit the set of The Office.

andPOP is giving away a copy of the DVD. Fill out the form below with your address by 10/11/2009 for your chance to win. Winner will be chosen at random.

Good luck!

This contest has ended.

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There’s little in the music world that excites me more than a good collaboration. Be the unlikely pairing of Eminem and Elton John, or inevitable power tracks from Jay-Z, Kanye and Rihanna (check out “Run This Town” if you haven’t already heard it.)

Recently, though, more than just musical minds have been getting together. So here’s the news.

It seems early to be looking forward to the holidays, but this year I actually have a reason to get excited. Bob Dylan is releasing a Christmas album, according to Pitchfork. No longer will I have to sit through the intolerable holiday stylings of Michael Buble, Destiny’s Child, or Jessica Simpson. At first I was hesitant, imagining his raspy, sarcastic attempts at “Santa Baby” or “Deck the Halls.”

But Dylan’s official website confirmed a more appropriate set list, including “Here Comes Santa Claus,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”, “O Little Town of Bethlehem”, “Winter Wonderland”, “Little Drummer Boy”, and “Must Be Santa.” The album artwork for Christmas in the Heart is also pure class, and will surely stand out amongst the glittery fare normally on the shelves around the holiday time. The album is set for release on Oct. 13 – a little on the early side but knowing Dylan, it will be worth much more than just holiday cheer.

The next commercial collabo is even more unsuspecting than Bob Dylan and Santa Claus – Nike and Sub Pop Records. Nike is releasing a shoe designed for the Quickstrike SB Blazer Elite series, whatever that is, and has pasted the black-and-white SubPop label discretely on the tongue. Sub Pop, the record label home to everyone from Fleet Foxes and Wolf Parade to Nirvana and Sunny Day Real Estate, have not posted any information on their website about the shoe. But I’m sure some diehard will be willing to shell out $150 for the black-and-yellow sneaker this fall.

Pending the release of their latest album, Weezer was caught in the crossfire of some harsh words about their choice of title. Raditude made it on Spin’s “20 Worst Album Titles of 2009″ before it was even released, and topped Rolling Stone’s list of “Dictionary-Defying Album Titles” (a very fun list, for those with time to spare or a computer at work).

Anyway, back to the point. Weezer dodged the bullet by informing the furrowed brow of the public that Rainn Wilson (The Office‘s Dwight and a recent comic darling) was responsible for the title.

“[Wilson] has a super-rock persona,” Rivers said, according to Pitchfork. “When it came time to find a title for the Weezer album, I asked him what he thought the ultimate album title would be, and he said ‘Raditude.’”

Naturally. The rest of the titles aren’t any more innovative – including singles “The Girl Got Hot” and “I’m Your Daddy.”

Weezer has never been one for album titles (see The Blue, Green and Red albums) or breaking boundaries, for that matter, considering they specialize in three-chord pop-punk about falling in love with Japanese teenagers. But for the group responsible for “My Name Is Jonas”, a cult-favourite and soundtrack to my youth, I hoped for something more. I won’t be able to weigh in until Raditude hits shelves Oct. 27, but expect disenchantment and some good puns. So far, all I have is “Baditude”.

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Jessica Alba will be guest staring in a special hour-long episode of “The Office” according to E! Online. The episode is scheduled to air on February 1, after the Super Bowl.

Funny-man Jack Black will join Alba for the episode. The two are set to play movie stars in a bootlegged movie on the episode that will be called “Stress Relief”.

Alba is currently filming “An Invisible Sign of My Own,” where she will play Mona Gray, a math teacher. The film is based on the book of the same title by Aimee Bender and focusses on Mona Gray, a woman who turns to math after dealing with a family illness. Other cast members include J.K. Simmons, the actor who played Peter Parker’s boss in the “Spider-Man” franchise.

Meanwhile, Black’s next project is “The Year One”. The movie follows two hunter-gatherers who are banished from a village. It is a comedy set in biblical times and co-stars Michael Cera.

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This week on The Office, it’s Halloween! For about 10 seconds. We are treated to a brief glimpse of Creed’s creepily realistic Joker costume and Andy’s mildly slutty kitten costume. Then, all of a sudden, I think it’s the next day because no one is dressed up anymore.

On this new day, Jim Halpert is off to New York to meet with his brothers and girlfriend Pam Beasley for dinner to celebrate their engagement. Holly Flax and Michael Scott are also departing on a road trip today. But theirs is a bit more of a downer. It turns out once corporate found out Holly and Michael were dating they decided to transfer her back to her old job in Nashua, New Hampshire. Not surprising, since the last time Michael dated someone within the company *cough*JAN*cough* it turned into the disaster of the century. So props to corporate for nipping this one in the bud.

Pam meets up with Jim’s brothers earlier than their scheduled dinner because she wants to play a prank on Jim. Her idea is to pretend that she lost her engagement ring and she has a whole story to go along with it. The brother’s aren’t on board. They’d rather “dog” her about being an artist and not having a real job (Pam: “they came up with that really fast”). Needless to say, once Jim arrives the prank falls pretty flat although the brothers think it’s hilarious.

Meanwhile, back at the office, it appears that Dwight has decided to coax out Andy’s anger management issues by wearing a Cornell sweater. It turns out he is actually applying to the school but “if it makes Andy angry then so be it.” And it does. The last straw appears to be when Dwight whips out a bobble head Big Red Bear.

Andy makes a call to the Cornell admissions office to ensure he gets to conduct Dwight’s admission interview. Pre-interview he says that if he “had to put Dwight’s chances into a percentage [he] would say he has none percent chance.” Well, now we know Cornell isn’t renowned for their English program. Moving on…

During the interview, Dwight decides to turn the tables on Andy and evaluate his skills as an interviewer. This culminates in rapid verbal note-taking on both their parts (Dwight: “interviewer has suspect motives” Andy: “applicant has a head shaped like a trapazoid”). In the end, I think it’s safe to say that they both failed miserably.

Lastly, we come to Holly and Michael’s road trip. It starts off promising with even Darryl (their chauffeur for the day) joining in on a rousing rendition of “Life is a Highway”. Unfortunately, the trip takes a turn for the worse around the song’s fourth rotation on Michael’s road trip CD. Holly begins to cry and it’s not the result of allergies or of Darryl touching her, although Michael feels the need to ask.

It turns out the drive to New Hampshire is longer than they thought it would be and Holly is concerned about the whole long-distance thing working out. While Michael is at first calm (“I’m not going to give up that easily…I’m going to make this way harder than it needs to be”), he eventually freaks out saying he won’t be able to cope and will go back to Jan, and he hates Jan.

Once they arrive at Holly’s house, she and Michael don’t state that they are officially breaking up but it seems kind of like a done deal. Michael and Darryl drive back to Scranton and Darryl suggests singing the blues to make Michael feel better. They do it. A capella. I never thought I’d say this but I think I’d prefer a fifth round of Life is A Highway…

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Michael Scott and the gang are coming north — sort of.

Winnipeg will be featured in an upcoming episode of “The Office” when Steve Carell’s eccentric boss and several of his employees visit the Manitoba capital on a business trip.

The show, which revolves around the fictional paper firm Dunder Mifflin in Scranton, Penn., did not actually film on location.

Instead, props were brought to the Los Angeles set to make the Winnipeg scenes — which take place at the airport, a hotel and a bar — as authentic as possible.

Viewers will be able to spot a range of local fare, from Fort Garry beer to Old Dutch potato chips.

The episode will air Nov. 13 on Global at 9 p.m.

Winnipeg has previously been featured in “The Simpsons” and is the setting (and shooting location) of the comedy-drama series “Less Than Kind,” which debuted on Citytv this month.

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In this week’s episode of The Office, newly formed Dunder-Mifflin couple Michael Scott and Holly Flax (Toby’s HR replacement) are accessories to a crime. I know what you’re thinking: these two?! But wait.

The episode opens with Michael and Holly discussing their last date. It seems it went well (this chick is definitely an HR Weirdo) and they set another one for that night.

Meanwhile, Andy hands out “save the date” notices for his and Angela’s wedding. Upon receiving his, Dwight looks like he wants to stab someone. And indeed Phyllis later finds him making a knife…with a knife. While he initially rejects her offer of advice, he eventually seeks her out, opening their conversation by running through a list of the things Angela introduced him to: pasteurized milk, sheets, monotheism, presents on your birthday, and, of course, preventative medicine. Phyllis tells Dwight the only way to get Angela back is to give her an ultimatum: Him or Andy. Can you say lose-lose situation?

Later that evening, as Holly and Michael are leaving the office for their date, Holly pretends to forget her keys, drawing Michael back into the building but locking the camera crew outside. They proceed to make out in the stairwell and Michael accidentally turns their microphones all the way up instead of down thinking it will give them privacy. The resulting audio is quite disturbing.

Unfortunately, neither Holly nor Michael locked the office upon their departure and they return in the morning to find it has been ransacked (Michael: “so much for sex without consequences”). Oscar is pissed because the thieves stole his laptop and Kevin is equally upset over the tragic loss of his surge protector. Also, we learn that the last person who stole from Creed Bratton disappeared. His name? Creed Bratton.

In an effort to rid themselves of their guilt and to recoup his employees’ losses, Michael holds a charity auction in which the big ticket item is a pair of backstage passes to a Bruce Springsteen concert. In the spirit of this theme he gives Darryl a list of his top 10 Springsteen songs to play. Darryl says that 3 of them were Huey Lewis and the News, one of them was Tracy Chapman’s Fast Car, and his personal favourite, Short People.

Meanwhile, Dwight delivers his ultimatum to Angela (“break off your engagement with the singing buffoon or say goodbye to this”-it’s not clear where he’s pointing but I think it might be below the belt). He gives her until 6:14 pm and when she does not respond by that point he takes it out on Phyllis, who wisely advises him to move on.

At the auction (which Michael has dubbed C.R.I.M.E.-A.I.D: Crime Reduces Innocence Makes Everyone Angry I Declare), Jim wins Darryl’s donation of a round of beers with the warehouse guys at the moment of purchase. They run into Pam’s ex-fiancee, Roy, at the bar and it’s awkward. He guilts Jim into driving to New York to visit Pam (who, by the way, is now working for Dunder-Mifflin’s corporate office and is therefore pestered by Michael over the phone at all hours), but on the way there Jim turns his car around stating that he’s “not that guy and they are not that couple.”

In the end, Michael claims that the Bruce Springsteen tickets were stolen (although he later reveals to Holly this it was sort of a grey area whether or not he had them), but Phyllis’s donation of “a hug” draws the biggest bid of the night thanks to Dwight’s inexplicable topping of her husband’s bids by “one penny” increments. The crowd disperses and Holly and Michael are left alone. Cue the fake Bruce Springsteen music…

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