Ricky Gervais found ‘After Life’ much harder to write than ‘The Office’.
The 58-year-old comedian – who created, wrote and starred in both sitcoms – has opened up about the challenges of penning the scripts for a show with a wider scope, compared to the more limited setting for his earlier project.
Asked which of his shows was the hardest to write, he told RadioTimes.com: "’Extras’ was hard, because the ambition was bigger.
"But again, it’s easy to explore the narcissism and ego of actors and actresses.
"’Derek’ was, again, quite easy – like ‘The Office’, really, a fake documentary about a load of characters in one place. So I’d say ‘After Life.’ "
Ricky explained the "situation" side of his Netflix show – which recently returned to the streaming platform with a second season – is "vast", which is far removed from the more basic premise behind ‘The Office’.
He added: "Almost the funny thing about ‘The Office’ was that nothing happens, so that was quite easy.
"And also [David] Brent was such a strong central character, it was a man who was desperately wanting to be famous and discovered, so once you know that, it’s clear."
Despite this, Ricky recently insisted he has no plans of bring back his first major hit show – which aired for two series between 2001 and 2003 – for a third and final run.
He said: "I don’t think I’ll ever bring back the old favourites. People think they want more, but they don’t.
"They just want the feeling they had when they saw it for the first time. David Brent at 60 is too sad."
However, he’d be tempted to explore ‘After Life’ further if the appetite is there from both Netflix and the fans.
He explained: "For the first time ever, I’ve wanted to do a third season of something. [‘After Life’] is my favourite ensemble I’ve ever done.
"It’s the richest world I’ve created, it’s not just a comedy about being in an office or an extra. So I’ve started thinking about it, but we have to see how season two goes down."
Ricky Gervais says After Life was harder to write than The Office
