The Office Star Is Refunding Fans For Failed Series
Stanley Hudson may have been the most no-nonsense character on The Office but the actor behind him is anything but. The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Leslie David Baker is planning to return every penny that he received from fans during a 2020 Kickstarter campaign for a spinoff series centered around his The Office character.
“We apologize about the delay in updates. We have been working behind the scenes to get everything on track and rewards fulfilled. We are just as excited as all of you to get this project out and truly appreciate all of your patience and support. The project took longer than anticipated due to circumstances beyond our control.”
Leslie David Baker
The unmade project, titled Uncle Stan, would have focused on Stanley’s life post-retirement who goes back into the workforce after his nephew seeks his help with his two kids and his business.
The initial campaign for The Office spinoff saw a goal of $300,000, which it reached, but the show never took off. Even more than $336,000 couldn’t help the series get off its feet, putting the final nail in the coffin for what could have been a major hit for any network willing to give it a chance.
It’s been three years since Baker and the team behind Uncle Stan began their crowdsourcing project, and in a statement, the actor apologized to fans about the “delay in updates”.
Along with his business partner, Sardar Khan, Baker said that they had been working around the clock to make sure things were running as smoothly as possible but that in the end, it was just a no-go.
First, he said, the issues were COVID-19 related, which makes sense given the times we were living in during the early days of lockdown, a time that not only Hollywood went on pause but also the rest of the world. And now, Baker explained that The Office offshoot was put through the wringer all over again due to the ongoing writers’ and actors’ strike.
Leslie David Baker has promised to return all fan donations he received for a failed The Office spinoff titled Uncle Stan.
Still keeping the hope alive that the fan-favorite The Office character would receive his own spin-off in the future, Baker said that the project would “be on hold indefinitely until an agreement is reached.” Even with this glimmer of hope, things aren’t looking great for fans as the duo has made the difficult decision to refund the money spent on the Kickstarter campaign, giving each and every penny back to the people who tried to make the show a success.
Noting that the economy is currently in a downturn, Baker says that he and the rest of the team knew that it was the right thing to do to give folks back their hard-earned dollars, explaining that those who gave can expect word of their refunds the moment that it’s issued. He went on to explain that many of the collections were either dropped or never fulfilled even after the campaign met its goal meaning that fewer funds are going out than in the bank as a total.
The initial campaign for The Office spinoff saw a goal of $300,000, which it reached, but the show never took off.
Baker joined a cast that included the likes of Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Steve Carell, Jenna Fischer, Mindy Kaling, Ellie Kemper, B.J. Novak, Ed Helms, Angela Kinsey, Catherine Tate, James Spader, Kate Flannery, Phyllis Smith, and Oscar Nuñez on the beloved NBC sitcom, The Office, that ran for nine seasons.
Following the series finale in 2013, fans clamored for the series to make a return in one way or another but, with this latest set of news, it seems that a spin-off is farther away than ever.
