After seven seasons of fun and a laughter in the offices of Dunder Mifflin, Scranton branch manager Michael Scott (Steve Carell) is leaving The Office. With the series star quitting while ahead, how do you end the season with a bang and more importantly, keep the series going strong after? With celebrity cameo appearances!

Everyone is eagerly awaiting the first appearance of The Office franchise mastermind, Ricky Gervais, on the American incarnation of the hit comedy mockumentary, reprising the role of David Brent on tomorrow's episode. And now, we can add another very special guest appearance for the second half of The Office's seventh season: Will Ferrell.

Hollywood comedian superstar Will Ferrell will be joining the cast of The Office for a four-episode stint towards the end of the current season, reuniting with his Anchorman co-star. What kind of character will Ferrell play? Another over-the-top and slightly less intelligent branch manager, of course. He and the fictional Michael Scott are a match made in heaven.

Executive producer Paul Lieberstein describes the situation best:

“We found Steve Carell when he was nothing but a movie star and we turned him into a television star. We are proud to continue The Office‘s tradition of discovering famous talent, and we hope that once America gets a good look at Will, they’ll see what we see: tremendous raw sexuality.”

Could Ferrell's appearance be leading to something a lot larger, possibly to help carry the torch for the future of The Office? If he's a similar character to Michael Scott, and certainly a bankable star, is it fathomable that he could eventually be a Dunder Mifflin/Sabre Scranton regular or potential new boss? We've heard the talk of other celebrity guest stars and we also know that show producers previously expressed interest in other popular comics including Danny McBride and Rhys Darby as potential cast members.

Ferrell's character will share three episodes with Michael Scott, then will have one episode after Steve Carell departs the show, with the rest of the cast. As we all wonder how the The Office will play out in the final season 7 episodes after Steve Carell finishes his part in April and whether any of the current employees including Darryl (Craig Robinson), Dwight (Rain Wilson), Andy (Ed Helms) or Kelly (Mindy Kaling) will become the new branch manager, what casting additions/changes will the show undergo for season 8?

The Office airs Thursdays @8pm, on NBC.

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Source: EW