The Office UK Vs US: Which Characters Are Best?

The series leads might actually be the most disparate characters. While Michael Scott started off as a simple copy and paste job, it soon became clear that Carell’s talents didn’t lend themselves to the bitter, angry character that heads up the UK Office.

Instead we were given a far more optimistic and likeable character, changes made at the urging of Gervais and Merchant. Michael is just as sad and lonely as Brent, but we’re given more reasons to believe that he is, in fact, a man of significant talent.

Ultimately, though, he’s simply not a patch on David Brent, one of the greatest and well observed sitcom characters ever created. Brent is astonishingly well observed - you’ll see examples of people who talk and act like him every single day, whereas Michael is a far broader character, in keeping with the US show’s approach.

Both are hilarious and perfectly acted, but on cultural impact alone this round has to go to the UK. Brent bursts onto the screen fully formed and painfully relatable. Michael evolves over time, but never reaches the same heights.