Netflix Reveals When ‘The Office’ Might Leave, and Users Are Dreading It

Netflix is promising fans that The Office isn’t leaving its streaming library anytime soon.

After a report in The Wall Street Journal stated that the Steve Carell-starring NBC sitcom was running on borrowed time on Netflix thanks to a likely launch of an NBCUniversal streaming service, Netflix is promising fans that The Office isn’t going anywhere before 2021, and may stay even longer than that!

“Hello it’s me with your regularly scheduled reminder that The Office will be on Netflix until 2021 — at least!” the streaming giant assured fans.

Fear that the streaming giant may be forcing viewers to say goodbye to one of the most-watched series on its platform (it currently ranks No. 1) was sparked following a Thursday, April 24 report by The Wall Street Journal, which cited a soon-expiring contract and NBCUniversal’s plans to launch its own streaming service as a potential threat to The Office’s longevity on Netflix.

“NBCUniversal, which owns the show, licensed reruns of the comedy to the streaming-video giant years ago,” the report notes. “Now, NBCUniversal is launching its own streaming service, and has begun internal discussions about removing The Office from Netflix when the contract expires in 2021, according to people familiar with the situation.”

The news caused panic to sweep across social media, with many voicing their concern, upset, and fears over the possible removal of the sitcom.

“Dear [Netflix], I love you, but if you remove The Office I will cancel my Netflix membership,” one person threatened.

“It’s not even funny how much The Office being off Netflix would impact my TV viewing habits,” another wrote.

The potential loss of The Office comes just month after rumors surfaced that the streaming service was at risk of losing yet another top-watched sitcom: Friends. In an effort to keep the series on its platform as WarnerMedia prepares to launch its own streaming service, Netflix reportedly shelled out $100 million.

The news also comes as more and more Disney content is pulled from Netflix in preparation of the November launch of Disney+, a streaming service that will host the complete Disney library, as well as a number of other titles.

Addressing the loss of content and the potential impact it could have, a Netflix spokesperson stated that while licensed content performs well, its original content is still among the top titles.

“Looking at overall watch time skews towards titles with many seasons. Most Netflix originals have three or fewer seasons at most. It’s why we focus on the individual shows or films members watch, as opposed to how much time they spend on one series versus another. And if you look at most watched titles, Netflix originals accounted for 10 out of 10 in the last quarter, or 21 out of the top 25,” a Netflix spokesperson said.

Both The Office and Friends are currently available for streaming.