Steve Carell and the Cast of 'The Office' Had a Big Reunion on 'SNL'

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Hosting for his third time, Steve Carell returned to SNL last night and brought a few old friends along with him. The actor's previous hosting gigs were in 2005 and 2008 when he was still the star of NBC's hit sitcom The Office, the show that turned the former Daily Show correspondent (and his bumbling character, Michael Scott) into a household name. In the years since, he's flexed his dramatic muscles on screen in movies like Foxcatcher, The Big Short, and this year's Beautiful Boy with Timothée Chalamet and the upcoming Welcome to Marwen, but last night he returned to his Dunder Mifflin roots in a big way.

During his opening monologue, the dapper-looking 56-year-old comedian spoke about how excited he was to host the show again before he was interrupted by an "audience member" who asked him if he would ever reboot The Office. "No, actually, I don't think so," replied Carell. "It was a great experience and I love all those people, but I just don't think it's the best idea. I think maybe we should just leave it alone."

It turns out some of "those people" were actually in the audience, too. After cast member Kenan Thompson also voted for a reboot of The Office, Carell was visited by his former co-stars Ellie Kemper, Ed Helms, and Jenna Fischer, who listed their own reasons why the star should rethink his feelings. "I need that money," said Kemper, now the star of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. "Let's get that money, Steve!" Even Carell's wife and two children got in on the light-hearted hazing, telling him he should just do the reboot already and they wouldn't miss him if he wasn't around as much. 

Did all those former colleagues and his loved ones convince him? For a second, it seemed like they did as the cast members gathered together on the Studio 8H Stage. "I am proud to announce officially... that we have a great show tonight," teased Carell. So, basically, don't get too excited. (Also, where was Jim? Too busy saving the world as Jack Ryan or hiding from those A Quiet Place monsters?)

While the idea of a reboot of The Office might just seem like a goofy thing to joke about during an SNL monologue, the idea has been kicked around by NBC executives in recent years, particularly as other beloved sitcoms of the past like Will & Grace have had second-life success after time away. In recent interviews, Carell has expressed some healthy skepticism about the concept and his interests appear to lie in more dramatic fare these days, but, hey, there's always the possibility that last night was enough fun to convince him otherwise.

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Dan Jackson is a staff writer at Thrillist Entertainment. He's on Twitter @danielvjackson.