Extras

[MacGuffin]

An extra dose of fame
Recognize Ricky Gervais? He'd rather you not, but celebrity fuels his BBC import.
Source: Los Angeles Times

RICKY GERVAIS was hanging out with some friends here recently when he experienced another brush with the uncomfortable byproduct of fame.

A group of Australian tourists approached the British comedian and asked casually, "Hey, you want to come have a beer with us?"

Gervais adopted a look of befuddlement as he recalled the exchange. "I'm with friends," he told them with disbelief. "No, I don't want to go have a beer with you."

The Australians seemed surprised.

Such awkward moments simultaneously amuse and appall Gervais, who harbors a deep dislike for celebrity and the superficial sense of intimacy it creates. They occur frequently when he's back home in London, where the pudgy actor-writer is well-recognized as the creator and star of the original BBC version of the television comedy "The Office."

"Everyone knows who you are, so you're always on," he said in a recent interview at HBO's Midtown offices, sporting a white T-shirt and stubble as he sipped from a coffee mug. "You're always thinking, 'How am I behaving?' "

Yet such discomfort also provides great fodder for his latest comedy, "Extras," which has aired in England and returns for its second season in the U.S. on Sunday on HBO. Conceived as a sardonic look at unsuccessful actors trying to make it in the movie business, the series takes a new turn this season when a sitcom script written by the long-struggling Andy Millman, played by Gervais, is picked up by the BBC.

Andy's exuberance is quickly diminished when network executives proceed to dumb down the workplace comedy, titled "When the Whistle Blows." They make him don a curly black wig and outsized glasses for his part as a dim factory boss. They insist his character utter an annoying catchphrase whenever someone appears to have cracked a joke: "Are you having a laugh?"

Critics pan "When the Whistle Blows," which is nevertheless a popular hit, a fact that only further depresses Andy. In one scene, he is accosted at a pub by fans of the sitcom who urge him to deliver his character's catchphrase, which he does with no small amount of self-loathing.

"The big theme of it, I suppose, is 'Don't compromise,' " Gervais said. "Be careful what you wish for. Success without respect is nothing."

Some of the incidents that befall Andy on "Extras" — like getting recognized by the homeless — were drawn from Gervais' own experiences.

But the 45-year-old comic has found the path to success substantially smoother than his on-air alter ego.

"The opposite happened to me, really," said Gervais, a former radio programmer who wrote "The Office" with his onetime assistant Stephen Merchant. The show was purchased by the BBC, developed a huge fan following in England and inspired the American version now airing on NBC.

"They left us alone completely," he said of the BBC executives. "Extras," on the other hand, shows "what could have happened. What would I have done? Would I have been a man? Would I have walked away? I would like to think so. It's a difficult decision. A lot of people say, 'I've been struggling for a while. Let's put on the funny wig and glasses.' "

Joining Gervais this season in his exploration of the trade-offs of success are A-list celebrities such as Orlando Bloom, Chris Martin and David Bowie, who pop up in cameos throughout the six episodes. The stars gleefully puncture their own images; Bloom, for example, is astounded that Andy's friend Maggie Jacobs does not find him attractive and insists on kissing her to prove his desirability.

"I think actors love taking the mickey out of themselves, because it's with their blessing," Gervais said. "They really like exorcising all these ridiculous auras and myths and legends around them, so they can debunk all these things and have fun with their press persona. It shows they're a good sport."

Like "The Office," "Extras" thrives off of what its creator terms the "comedy of embarrassment." Andy's contorted efforts to promote himself inevitably result in cringe-inducing humiliation, such as the time he persuades Maggie to ask for his autograph in front of a female neighbor he's trying to impress, only to have her stumble and reveal the ruse. The neighbor looks at him with scorn and disgust.

"In a society where it's safe and we've got enough food and we're not being shot at, the worst thing that happens to most people every day is they might have embarrassed themselves or they have bad service," Gervais said. "I think everybody can relate to that."

Of course, some people in England never got the humor of "Extras," he admitted.

"The real irony is, people shout the catchphrase to me on the street. They go, 'You having a laugh?' " he said, sighing heavily. "I want to sit down and go, 'Let me explain.' "

For the most part, though, Gervais believes the theme of "Extras" is universal, which is why he dismisses the idea that American audiences don't understand British irony as "total rubbish."

"That's idiots not getting it in England," he said, exasperated. " 'The Simpsons,' 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' — Americans get irony. A lot of English things are very parochial. And it gets big in England, and then they wonder why it doesn't get big in America. Well, you haven't made it accessible."

The first season of "Extras" that aired on HBO in September 2005 drew a modest audience of 700,000 viewers on average for the first airing of each episode and an average of 1.6 million people watching each episode on the various HBO channels throughout a week.

But Gervais professed to be unconcerned about the ratings.

"I care less what happens to it when it's exactly how I wanted it to turn out," he said. "I'd much rather it be a million people's favorite show than 10 million people's 10th favorite show. I just think the point of this in any sort of art form, even as lowly an art form as a sitcom, is to make a connection."

The comic is now immersed in his newest project, an animated television adaptation of his children's book series "Flanimals." He's also touring Britain in his third stand-up show, "Fame," adding somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm afraid it's sold out."

For now, Gervais has no plans to do another season of "Extras," although he noted that there was a rumor in England that he was working on a third season in which Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger would appear.

Gervais giggled at the thought.

"Although if he called and said, 'I'd be in it,' I'd do one, definitely," he added brightly. "I think we could have great fun with Arnie."

[Derek]

The bit with Patrick Stewart in his trailer, when he's giving Andy career advice is absolutely one of the funniest things I've ever seen. And I've seen everything.

[Neil]

Great show. How far in is the second season?

[ASmith]

That would be a bit of a weak end to the series if in fact the season 2 finale was the last episode.  Comedically it was brilliant, of course, but I felt that it didn't conclude the story with any real satisfaction.  A few scenes also felt as though they were stuffed in in an attempt to tie up every loose end of an unfairly short season.  Maybe I just want more.

On the other hand 12 episodes over two years leaves plenty of time for Ricky to have something else ready to premiere.  Let's just hope there's a part in Gervais' next work for Stephen Merchant, who was as good as anyone in his role on Extras. 

[modage]

That would be a bit of a weak end to the series if in fact the season 2 finale was the last episode.  Comedically it was brilliant, of course, but I felt that it didn't conclude the story with any real satisfaction.

i agree.  definitely did not cover as much ground as The Office did in the same amount of time.  while the second season was funny obviously, i don't think there was as much character development as there could've been.  at the same time i'm not dying for a 3rd series of this, since there will probably never be one. 

[MacGuffin]

Extras Ending After Two Seasons
Source: Variety

Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant have ruled out a third season of cult British comedy hit "Extras."

The writer-performers, who also created "The Office," will end "Extras" with a one-off special as they did with "The Office."

"We don't have a date or any details about the cast yet," a spokeswoman for Gervais said, adding that the idea was in its "very, very early" stages. However, the pair "will, at some point, sit down together and write it," she said.

"Extras" follows the exploits of comic actor Andy Millman and his haphazard agent, Darren Lamb. HBO airs it in the U.S.

[Ravi]

I just finished series 1 and its funny, but I don't love it.  I didn't find any single episode particularly brilliant, and the episodes themselves are uneven.  I do like that Gervais doesn't play another Brent-like buffoon, though he has his moments of idiocy.  There's little that is outright bad about the show, but some of the humor, like the faux pas around minorities, gave me deja vu.  Stephen Merchant as the inept agent was the funniest recurring part of series 1.

Photos of Ricky Gervais in an 80s pop group Seona Dancing

[cine]

season 2 is kicking season 1's ass. good god.

don't worry, ravi, the best is coming.

[modage]

trailer here: http://www.rickygervais.com/

[cine]

The British phenomenon and 2007 Emmy®-winner Ricky Gervais, founder of BBC's original The Office, stars in the hilariously funny series Extras, now available in a Gift Set!

Watch the story unfold as Ricky Gervais plays a lowly film extra, Andy Millman, who makes his mark in the background while the stars do their work. The never-before released 90 minute Extra Special Series Finale will feature big guest stars including Clive Owen and George Michael!

This Gift Set is packaged in a slip case that includes both Seasons of the hit series Extras and the 90 minute Extra Special Series Finale.

Yes, HBO's show returns to DVD on January 15th in a special Extras - The Complete Series gift set that contains both seasons, previously released on DVD, and new content in the form of a 90-minute "Extra Special Series Finale". No further info is available just yet, as this was mainly a heads-up for retailers about the upcoming set, so the only other detail we have so far is a list price of $49.99. Stay tuned and we'll bring you more info, and package art, just as soon as that is available for the press.

[MacGuffin]

Ricky Gervais: It's a Wrap for `Extras'

It feels like an actual scene from HBO's "Extras."

Ricky Gervais, the writer-director-star of the critically acclaimed showbiz lampoon, is sitting on the set of "Ghost Town," a 2008 release and his first feature film as a leading man. A few feet away, a group of real-world extras are stationed on the other side of a flimsy retractable rope line.

"They're not allowed to mix with me. That's electrified," he boasts, not breaking from the signature deadpan that helped him win a best actor Emmy for "Extras" earlier this year. "If they get anywhere near me, 40,000 volts go through them. It's true."

He's kidding. Right?

Either way, Gervais' transition to the big screen is leaving no room for Andy Millman on the small one.

The movie-extra-turned-sitcom-star character will soon join embarrassing boss David Brent from the British triumph "The Office" in retirement. Gervais and comedy partner Stephen Merchant, who also plays Millman's hilariously amateurish agent, are ending "Extras" with an 80-minute Christmas special, just like they did with "The Office" four years ago.

"It probably won't capture the zeitgeist like `The Office' did, but I think this is the best work we've ever done," Gervais told The Associated Press during an interview on the "Ghost Town" set.

In the surprisingly emotional finale, airing Dec. 16 at 9 p.m. EST, Millman quits his silly sitcom "When the Whistle Blows" in hopes of working on more meaningful projects. Of course, in the forlorn fashion of "Extras," Millman instead fades further into obscurity, forced to accept such bit parts as an alien slug on an episode of "Doctor Who" and appear as a contestant on a particularly washed-up edition of "Celebrity Big Brother."

Don't expect a happy ending for Millman. Do expect to "be havin' a laff."

"We wanted it to be a standalone movie," Gervais says. "It was practice for my possible future career. I did want it to be more filmic, not just another episode. I wanted it to properly end the series. Most of all, if you've never seen `Extras,' I wanted you to be able to watch it and know what's going on. It has a beginning, middle and end."

It also has some shrewd cameos from George Michael, Gordon Ramsay and Clive Owen as themselves.

Since its debut on the BBC in 2005, "Extras" has attracted a cadre of A-list celebrities willing to unabashedly defame themselves in the name of comedy. Looking back, Gervais counts David Bowie, Samuel L. Jackson, Kate Winslet and Robert De Niro among the series' most memorable guest stars.

Gervais says a pivotal scene in the finale, in which Clive Owen petitions perennial background actress Maggie Jacobs (played by Ashley Jensen) to smear the nastiest of special effects cocktails on her face, is the series' funniest.

"I think the sketch with Clive Owen is the most perfect comedy sketch ever," Gervais says. "He's brilliant in it."

HBO is billing the "Extras" Christmas special as the series finale. However, unlike "The Office," Gervais could envision returning for more. He already knows what he wants Millman to do next: come to America.

"I can imagine it," Gervais reasons. "With `The Office,' I couldn't imagine it. I've never gone back to it, and I never will. If we ever did another `Extras,' which we almost certainly won't, I think it would be about Andy trying to make it in Hollywood and failing miserably. Obviously."

Perhaps, by then, Gervais will be A-list enough to cameo as himself.

[cine]

so i just watched the xmas special and goddamnit, they've done it again. i probably teared up at the exact same spot i did with the office xmas special. how the fuck do they do it?

extras is officially superior to the office.

[modage]

extras is officially superior to the office.

[cine]

and now i woof myself.

[cron]

aww this was adorable. i don't know what else to say