The producers of NBC's The Office spin-off have made their first casting hire, and it's Aziz Ansari of MTV's Human Giant. "We met him pretty early on and thought he was very funny," exec producer Greg Daniels tells Variety. "[W]e have a good character for him."The spin-off's premise has yet to be finalized, as producers still are sorting through several ideas. It's unlikely that any current Office staffer will get spun off; rather, one or more characters from the new series probably will be introduced this fall on the mothership, paving the way for the companion show's midseason launch."We're trying to come up with the best concept and hire the funniest writers," exec producer Michael Schur tells Variety. "In the next couple of weeks, we'll be making the final move to one specific idea." As first reported by TVGuide.com, Ansari will be featured on the final season of Scrubs, which finishes filming this August and will air on ABC. — Matt Mitovich
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Dr. Cox is going to have three new souls to torture when Scrubs moves to ABC next season. Sources confirm to me exclusively that Betsy Beutler (The Black Donnellys), Eliza Coupe (HBO's 12 Miles of Bad Road) and Aziz Ansari (MTV's Human Giant) are joining the cast as Sacred Heart's newest interns. The trio will appear on a recurring basis.The injection of new blood is part of an ambitious plan to return the show to its more drama-filled roots. To read about the other changes in store, check out my fresh Q&A with series creator Bill Lawrence (aka Da Man).
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