With Steve Carell’s return to SNL after 10 years, ratings shot up, as most likely did the blood pressure of certain targeted parties. Carell’s bold portrayal of Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, was one of the defining moments, where Carell serenely informed the president of his reasoning behind why the new Amazon headquarters were located in the president’s hometown and current residence. Carell, as Bezos, stated calmly, “I chose our locations because they were ideal for growing business, not just to make Donald Trump think about how I’m literally 100 times richer than he is.”
The president wasn’t the only one targeted last night. Carell bamboozled the audience when a few members of the cast from The Office made surprise guest appearances. In the midst of his monologue, Carell was first haggled by a fake audience member and by Kenan Thompson about an Office reboot.
Then, Ellie Kemper, who played receptionist Erin Hannon in the show and who now stars in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, stood up and announced “People would really love to see an Office reboot. Especially me.” Immediately after, Ed Helms, or Andy Bernard from The Office, told Steve, “You wouldn’t have to do all those sad movies anymore,” to which Carell replied, “I don’t do those movies for the money, I like doing them.”
The rouse continued with Jenna Fischer, famous for her role as Pam Beesly, revealing the secret whispered words her character spoke to Michael before moving to Denver, the words that fans have been dying to know: “Steve, don’t be a d**k, do the reboot.”
The last surprise appearances were by Carell’s own wife and children, claiming they didn’t need him and he’d be better off doing the reboot. If that weren’t enough, the last straw for fans was when Carell called up Kemper, Helms and Fischer in what seemed like an announcement for a reboot: “I’m proud to announce officially that… we have a great show tonight!”
Despite these antics, Carell has left fans of The Office wondering if an actual reboot of the show might be in the works. Was it a ploy or a plug? Whatever the intentions, Carell’s return to SNL was welcomed with a rise in live viewer ratings and another night for the books.