What Happened to Steve Carell’s Netflix Comedy With The Office Creator?

In 2020, Netflix announced the arrival of a hot new comedy series titled Space Force, which paired Steve Carell and Greg Daniels, the actor and creator duo behind the US remake of The Office. 2 seasons later, Space Force joined the multitude of slashed Netflix original IPs, fated to be lost to time and memory.

The series starred John Malkovich, boasted a sharp and cutting dialogue, and featured unparalleled comedic performances from Carell, Malkovich, and Ben Schwartz. While it became an immediate favorite among fans, the comedy series failed to stay in the streamer’s good books, leading to its cancellation. The several reasons that contributed to its demise are further discussed below.

Behind the Fated Demise of Steve Carell and Greg Daniels’ Netflix Comedy

Nothing at Netflix is ever safe from being canned due to early ratings and viewership numbers. Even veterans of the industry like Steve Carell and Greg Daniels languish under the threat of having their series cancelled for the same reasons. Despite its great premise and potential, Space Force struggled under lukewarm reviews and a dwindling viewership at the streamer.

Story-wise, the series was criticized for its poor handling of satire while also being considered tonally uneven. While Season 2 was an improvement, it still didn’t make the cut on Nielsen’s top 10 charts for streaming, as reported by Deadline. Season 1 managed to stay on Netflix’s Top 10 for a few weeks, while Season 2 dropped out entirely after peaking at 5th place upon release.

Moreover, Netflix was pouring money into the series, given its expensive sets and added costs due to the pandemic. All of the factors combined to make Space Force a burden that wasn’t worth the effort for the streamer. It was favorable with 59% critics and 77% audiences on Rotten Tomatoes and scored a 6.7/10 on IMDb.

Greg Daniels had more than proven himself as a successful name in the comedy industry with projects like The Office and Parks and Recreation, but the divisive response behind Space Force outshone Daniels’s reputation.

The Real-Life Inspiration Behind Netflix’s Space Force

Space Force was a topical comedy at the time of its premiere. Underneath the cover of fun banter, humorous dialogue, eccentric characters, and a dysfunctional setting is a layered parody of the government military program, which was launched a year prior, also called the United States Space Force.

The division was established as a new branch under the US armed forces in December 2019. The USSF is tasked with a multitude of space-related tasks that range from tracking space debris to developing a framework for fighting a war in space (via Space).

Other tasks also involve protecting the US’s access and freedom to operate in space, launching military and communication satellites, cybersecurity, detecting incoming missiles, monitoring space for potential threats, and training for space warfare.

Below is a table of the cast list of the Netflix series and their respective roles in the comedy:

What did you think of the Netflix comedy series? Would it have succeeded if allowed to continue, like other Daniels projects, like Parks & Rec? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Space Force is available to stream on Netflix.