Summary
Greg Daniels, creator ofThe OfficeandParks and Recreation, is in a rare class of screenwriters and showrunners who even casual television fans will know the name of. Being the showrunner for a TV show can be a thankless job, a screenwriter even more so. Most people are lucky to have even one season of a show ordered, but there are those rare fewshowrunners who have produced multiple beloved series. Dick Wolf and Shonda Rhimes are classic examples of successful showrunners, while Tina Fey, Mindy Kaling, and Vince Gilligan represent a new guard of TV developers.
Showrunners for comedies, like Kaling, Fey, and Daniels, also often serve as screenwriters and the insular world of comedy has made sure that many creators have spent lots of time together. The web that connectsSNL, Judd Apatow movies, and some of the best network comedy TV shows is extensive and complex, with writers, directors, actors, and showrunners swapping roles from one series to the next. Greg Daniels is not only in that web, but there’s a way to look at it that positions him as a starting point for many of its threads.
15 Best Mockumentary TV Comedy Series, Ranked
While the best mockumentary TV comedy series owe a lot to The Office’s success, there are other shows made in the style that are worth the watch, too.
Greg Daniels Is A Screenwriter Who Got His Start On SNL & The Simpsons
Daniels Also Co-Created King Of The Hill With Mike Judge
Greg Daniels began his career as a writer, quickly moving up from small jobs to working forSNLfrom 1987 to 1990. It wasatSNLthat he received his first of 21 Emmy nominationsand his first of five wins. After a brief hiatus, and one penned episode ofSeinfeld, Daniels joinedThe Simpsonsin 1993, which was the start of season 5 and a moment when many of the original writers had left the show. Daniels believed he was coming on board too late, as he toldNPR,
“Well, I got to ‘The Simpsons’ at the end of Season 4 and the beginning of Season 5. And I pretty much felt that the glory days were over and that I had missed the boat, and then it lasted another 20 years.”
But against the beliefs of many prognosticators,The Simpsonscontinued to be a ratings and critical juggernaut over Daniels' next three seasons as a writer and producer. It’s that time cutting his teeth onThe Simpsonsthat really springboarded his career. He then went on to co-createKing of the Hillwith Mike Judge, which lasted from 1997-2010.
Daniels Achieved Sitcom Legacy Status For His Work On The Office & Creating Parks & Rec
Daniels Popularized And Perfected Mockumentary Storytelling
WhileKing of the Hillwas and is a beloved series that has only gotten better with age, it was the American adaptation ofThe Officein 2005 that ensured no one would forget Daniels' name anytime soon. He was involved in all aspects of the show from start to finish and still found time to developParks and Recreationin 2009 withThe Officescreenwriter, Michael Schur. Both series are considered some ofthe best TV shows of all timeandthe contribution of their mockumentary-style filmmaking to comedy is as pivotal as found footage is to horror.
Parks and Recreationwas originally supposed to be a spin-off ofThe Officebut ended up taking place in its own timeline.
When asked about how he weaved critiques of corporate and government culture into these two shows, Daniels said (viaAV Club),
“I think that especially when you’re building a show in the beginning, you are trying to build in themes and interesting things that you know will pay off three or four years from now in terms of being able to write an episode that you don’t see coming. But it has conflict and it’s about something. And so there’s a lot of effort put into going, ‘Ah, what is this about? Why is Parks And Rec different from The Office? What are the themes? Why is [Leslie Knope] so positive and optimistic about government? And yet she works for Ron, who doesn’t even believe in government at all. Like, why are they opposites? Right?’ It’s so that there’s going to be tension and different points of view on things going deep into the show.
If they’re set up properly there’s a lot to play off of in the future. You don’t have to constantly be talking about it because it’s kind of baked into their character interactions. So you can just be fun on the dialogue level. I think that the world is the world, and if you approach it with a comedic eye you’re going to notice certain things, certain inconsistencies, certain hypocrisies. And you’re going to be writing about them, maybe over and over.”
Daniels' shows have always been characters first,with the comedy and storylines coming out of the characters and relationships he carefully crafts.
Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program
King of the Hill(1999)
Daniels Is Developing A Show Set In The Office Universe For Peacock
Nathan For You Co-Creator Michael Korman Is Co-Developing The Series
AfterThe OfficeandParks and Recreation, Daniels developed the showsUploadandSpace Force.Uploadwill end when season 4 finally airs, and the latter was canceled after two seasons. Now Daniels is working on a new series with Michael Koman, the co-creator ofNathan For You(viaPeacock).The series will take place in the same universe asThe Office, with the documentary crew finding a new subject, a teetering Midwestern newspaper, and the publisher trying to revive it with volunteer reporters.
Domhnall Gleeson (White House Plummers) and Sabrina Impacciatore (The White Lotus) will lead the show, which began filming in July.Greg Daniels, Koman, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant, Howard Klein, Ben Silverman, and Banijay Americas are executive producing. With this lineup, it won’t be a surprise if the show is a hit.
Parks and Recreation
Cast
Parks and Recreation is a television series that premiered in 2009, focusing on Leslie Knope, a mid-level bureaucrat in Pawnee, Indiana. She encounters various challenges from bureaucrats and citizens while striving to beautify the town through her role in the Parks and Recreation Department.
