Just one year after The Paper debuted on Peacock, the spinoff of The Office is back for more. The same documentary crew that followed Dunder Mifflin in-universe is now tracking a local newspaper under the same corporate umbrella, with some familiar faces coming along for the ride. And while the debut season failed to pick up a single Emmy nomination, it scored an 83% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer and had enough support for a second season.
If you are craving more mockumentary workplace sitcoms, here is everything you need to know before The Paper Season 2 launches:
When does The Paper Season 2 come out?
Season 2 will premiere on Peacock at 3 a.m. ET on Wednesday, September 9. Season 1 had a total runtime of 4 hours and 48 minutes across its 10 episodes, which is the same format that Season 2 will follow.
As was the case with Season 1, the entirety of The Paper Season 2 will drop all at once as part of a binge release. While The Paper is a Peacock original, Season 1 did eventually air on NBC in November. Perhaps the higher-ups will run it back with a similar move for Season 2, but there are no public plans to do so at the moment.
(Warning: Spoilers for The Paper Season 1 ahead.)
Who is starring in the show?
The. Here is a look at who is part of the main cast for The Paper Season 2:
- Domhnall Gleeson as Ned Sampson
- Chelsea Frei as Mare Pritti
- Sabrina Impacciatore as Esmeralda Grand
- Ramona Young as Nicole Lee
- Melvin Gregg as Detrick Moore
- Gbemisola Ikumelo as Adelola Olofin
- Alex Edelman as Adam Cooper
- Oscar Nunez as Oscar Martinez
- Duane Shepard Sr. as Barry
- Eric Rahill as Travis Bienlien
- Tim Key as Ken Davies
- Allan Havey as Marv Putnam
While Oscar was the only member of the main The Office cast who appeared in Season 1, the character does still keep in touch with Stanley Hudson. Maybe Leslie David Baker will reprise his role for The Paper Season 2, but nothing has been confirmed yet.
What to expect in The Paper Season 2
Ned successfully turned around the Toledo Truth Teller in Season 1, helping the midwestern newspaper reel in several Ohio Journalism Awards. So at least for now, the paper isn’t in immediate jeopardy. On the interpersonal level, Ned and Mare finally kissed to get it out of their system, but then things went a little further. Nicole, meanwhile, broke off her casual fling with Detrick when she found out he was exclusive on his end. Even the CEO of the parent company, Marv, apparently has a thing for his assistant and sister-in-law, Ann.
With all of that going on, Esmeralda still ended Season 1 trying to be the center of attention – although maybe she got humbled a bit at the awards show. The same goes for Ken, who has continued to humiliate himself in his efforts to make himself seem more important. And per usual, Oscar is quick to point out the absurdity of everything going on around him.
Here are the official episode titles and synopses for The Paper Season 2:
S2E1 – The Best of Us: After a magical weekend sweeping the Ohio Journalism Awards, Ned tries to find the right time to ask Marv for a bigger budget; Esmeralda loudly plays the grief card.
S2E2 – Weekend Ned: Ned and Mare ditch the documentary crew, leaving Adam and Adelola in charge of the weekend edition; Esmeralda recruits Ken to be her son’s pretend dad.
S2E3 – Hearst’s Mistress: Ned and Mare search for a journalistic crusade and find themselves at her apartment; Oscar negotiates the rights to Mr. Digit with Marv.
S2E4 – Impressing a Cop: Mare finds a fabulous story after Ned has a bruising interaction at his cop source’s gun range; Oscar enjoys “The Real Single Ladies of Toledo”; Esmeralda plans a not-so-scary haunted house.
S2E5 – Dueling Pencils: Ned and Mare’s crusade is delayed when their new podcast gets too spicy; Esmeralda pays the price for embarrassing the company.
S2E6 – 125 Years Young: Ned invites journalists to witness the paper’s 125th birthday and finds out what it’s like to be the story; Esmeralda has to make up years of skipped HR training and gets creative.
S2E7 – Tornado Alert: When a tornado threatens Toledo, Ned struggles with his emergency messaging; the staff at the Cincinnati Chronicle consider Mare primitive; Esmeralda tries to prove she is not a narcissist; Travis and Adelola storm chase.
S2E8 – Secret Team: Ned forms a secret team after he’s told he can’t cover an important story; Esmeralda forms her own covert squad to find out what Ned’s secret team is up to.
S2E9 – Who’s Marv Marving?: Ned tries to protect Mare from nasty rumors; Esmeralda interviews to be the consort of a powerful 90-year-old; Marv and Ann go undercover to help with the investigation.
S2E10 – The NS Board: Ned finds publishing his and Detrick’s big story will require sacrifices, as do other worthwhile things; Esmeralda goes undercover to expose prejudice; Mare has a choice to make if she wants to play in the big leagues.
The Paper FAQs
When does The Paper come out?
The Paper Season 2 will premiere at 3 a.m. ET on Wednesday, September 9. All 10 episodes will drop at the same time.
Where can I watch The Paper?
The Paper will be available to stream on Peacock. Season 1 eventually aired on NBC two months after it debuted on the company’s streaming service, so they could choose to run Season 2 on network TV as well.
Will there be another season of The Paper?
Neither Peacock nor NBC has publicly renewed The Paper for a third season. The Season 2 renewal came before Season 1 even premiered, so a potential Season 3 already isn’t on the same timeline.
Is The Paper a spinoff of The Office?
Yes, The Paper is an official spinoff of The Office. Greg Daniels, who developed the US version of The Office, returned to the world of Dunder Mifflin 12 years after the show came to a close. So far, Oscar and Bob Vance are the only characters who have crossed over.
