Further testing the bounds of how much of a TV show's cast you can expunge while still pretending it is that TV show, the purgatorial ninth season of The Office will also feature a greatly reduced role for B.J. Novak, who's leaving his full-time duties as both a writer and the guy who occasionally pops up to drop a douchey reference to Millennial pop culture and the Internet. According to TV Guide, Novak is officially stepping back from the show, but is still expected to make a few recurring appearances, and could even potentially return to contribute some writing or direct an episode—though the article makes all of those prospects sound incredibly vague. Novak isn't formally attached to Mindy Kaling's The Mindy Project either, despite serving as an executive producer on its pilot, making the reasons for his exit similarly unclear. You know, besides the fact that everyone else is doing it. Indeed, Novak now joins Kaling and other exiting principals Paul Lieberstein and (eventually) Rainn Wilson, in a year that will also reportedly see fewer episodes for Ed Helms and John Krasinski, plus an increased amount of Catherine Tate in what now ranks as the series' strongest attempt at consistency. But hopefully Novak will still remain in the opening credits, as that would make as much sense as it ever has.
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