Despite his time writing on Saturday Night Live, Michael Schur wasn’t a fan of one sketch parodying his work. After leaving the NBC sketch comedy show to write for The Office in 2005, he said the SNL sketch ‘The Japanese Office’ “didn’t feel right to me in some way” when Steve Carell and Ricky Gervais

It doesn’t help that people in comedy like to do things they deem “risky.” Pushing buttons is a big part of comedy. It works sometimes. Crafting material that is close to the edge can force people to look at things differently.

The fictional Japanese show starred white SNL cast members like Jason Sudeikis playing Jim, Kristen Wiig playing Pam, Bill Hader as Dwight, and episode host Steve Carell reprising his role as Michael — but everyone spoke Japanese, and the sketch included no subtitles.

Before Mike Schur helped create beloved comedy series like “The Good Place,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “Parks and Recreation,” he won Emmys as a writer on “Saturday Night Live” and “The Office.” The two series collided in May 2008 when “The Office” star Steve Carell hosted “SNL” and participated in a viral digital short titled “The

The writer was joined on the podcast by CNN host Jake Tapper, 55, who asked Schur whether his assessment was influenced by any “‘Office’ baggage” he might have. “I worke

Mike Schur successfully transitioned from writing at Saturday Night Live to working on some of the best sitcoms of all-time. So when Schur gave his thoughts on SNL's attempt to parody his show The Office,