Is Dunder Mifflin from The Office shut down? Peacock’s The Paper finally explains its fate 20 years later

Peacock’s The Paper returns to The Office universe 20 years later, with Dunder Mifflin gone and a struggling Toledo paper in focus.

By: Entertainment Desk

New Delhi | September 5, 2025 12:20 PM IST

The Paper: Peacock’s new spin on The Office universe

Dunder Mifflin is gone meet Enervate and the Toledo Truth-Teller

Peacock’s new series The Paper belongs to the iconic The Office universe but steers clear of the idea that it’s a reboot. The story picks up twenty years after the original documentary crew first walked into Dunder Mifflin Scranton in 2005. But now, when the camera returned to Scranton, Dunder Mifflin is no longer present. Instead, the old office space now belongs to a laser company called One and Done.

Is the iconic Dunder Mifflin shut down?

The new Peacock series opens with a note, “In 2005, a documentary crew started filming at a paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. They followed the workers in an average office, dealing with new rules of workplace behaviour and the ups and downs of their personal lives. Twenty years later, they returned.” When the documentarians returned, they found Bob Vance of Vance Refrigeration, the business that operated next door to Dunder Mifflin, something fans of the show will definitely remember. Bob, played by Robert R. Shafer, who married Dunder Mifflin worker Phyllis (played by Phyllis Smith) in Season 3 of The Office, explains, “Dunder Mifflin has been gone for a while now.” He adds, “Phyl and Stanley Leslie David Baker keep in touch. We both have schnoodles. Awesome dogs. Other than that, the One and Done guys are fine. Less drama, that’s for sure.”

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Curious documentarians then run a quick search on the local Chamber of Commerce site and find that the company was bought out in 2019 by Enervate. The firm is a paper products business based in Toledo, Ohio. “That’s right, I remember them asking if Phyllis wanted to move to Toledo,” said. And that’s how the story shifts. Greg Daniels, who ran The Office for four seasons, told The Hollywood Reporter in a recent interview that there was constant push and pull to make a direct spinoff. But he was reluctant, the main reason being the original cast. Without them, he never wanted to make one, and getting everyone back together years later would’ve been a hassle.

So now, the subject of the story is Enervate, a business that makes office supplies, toilet paper, janitorial rolls, even toilet seat covers, which also happens to own a struggling local paper, the Toledo Truth-Teller. On day one, they catch the paper’s new editor-in-chief, Ned Sampson (Domhnall Gleeson), walking in to take charge. He is hopeful about the future, but it looks shaky.

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Then comes the big connection, Oscar Martinez (Oscar Nuñez), one of the original Scranton employees, now works for Enervate in Toledo. He didn’t expect to see the cameras again, and he’s not thrilled. Unfortunately, that waiver he signed in 2005 still applies. The contract said the film crew could follow him forever. So whether he likes it or not, he’s back on camera.

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But, according to Daniels, while Dunder Mifflin is shut down, it is not completely dead. Daniels admitted that he was grilled by reporters and fans about what exactly happened to Dunder Mifflin, so he keeps it intentionally murky. Instead of trying to recreate Jim, Pam, and Michael, The Paper introduces a new cast. Sabrina Impacciatore, Chelsea Frei, Melvin Gregg, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Alex Edelman, Ramona Young, and Tim Key are the new employees with unique personalities.

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