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{{short description|1999 American comedy film}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Office Space
| image          = Office space poster.jpg
| alt            = An office worker completely covered in [[Post-it notes]]
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Mike Judge]]
| producer       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Daniel Rappaport]]
* [[Michael Rotenberg]]
}}
| screenplay     = Mike Judge
| based_on       = {{based on|''[[Milton (cartoon)|Milton]]''|Mike Judge}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Ron Livingston]]
* [[Jennifer Aniston]]
* [[Stephen Root]]
* [[Gary Cole]]<!-- Please do not add any more names to this list. This is the list as provided by the film poster. -->
}}
| music          = [[John Frizzell (composer)|John Frizzell]]
| cinematography = [[Tim Suhrstedt]]
| editing        = [[David Rennie (film editor)|David Rennie]]
| studio         = [[Judgmental Films]]
| distributor    = [[20th Century Fox]]
| released       = {{Film date|1999|02|19}}
| runtime        = 89 minutes<ref>{{cite web|title=Office Space |url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/AVF157325|website=[[British Board of Film Classification]]|access-date=February 7, 2019}}{{dead link|date=April 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $10 million<ref name="thenum" /><ref name="mojo" />
| gross          = $12.2 million<ref name="thenum">{{cite web |url= https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Office-Space |title=Office Space - Summary|publisher=The Numbers |access-date=2013-12-15}}</ref>
}}
'''''Office Space''''' is a 1999 American [[Satire (film and television)|satirical]] [[black comedy film]] written and directed by [[Mike Judge]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Office Space|website=[[AllMovie]]|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/office-space-v176021}}</ref> It satirizes the [[office job|office]] work life of a typical 1990s [[software company]], focusing on a handful of individuals weary of their jobs. It stars [[Ron Livingston]], [[Jennifer Aniston]], [[Gary Cole]], [[Stephen Root]], [[David Herman]], [[Ajay Naidu]], and [[Diedrich Bader]].<ref>{{cite news| url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-feb-19-ca-9435-story.html| title='Office' Puts Corporate Culture Through the Comedy Shredder| author=Kevin Thomas| date=February 19, 1999| newspaper=Los Angeles Times| access-date=April 14, 2015}}</ref>

''Office Space'' was filmed in [[Dallas]] and [[Austin, Texas]]. It is based on Judge's ''[[Milton (cartoon)|Milton]]'' cartoon series and was his first foray into live-action filmmaking. The film was Judge's second full-length motion picture release, following ''[[Beavis and Butt-Head Do America]]''. It was released in theaters on February 19, 1999, by [[20th Century Fox]]. Its sympathetic depiction of ordinary [[information technology]] workers garnered a cult following within that field, but it also addresses themes familiar to [[White-collar worker|white-collar]] employees and the workforce in general. It was a box office disappointment, making $12.2 million on a $10 million production budget; however, it sold well on home video, and has become a [[cult film]].<ref name="Doty">{{cite news | last=Doty | first=Meriah | title=Film flops flourish on DVD, VHS | work=CNN | url=http://edition.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/04/second.wind/index.html | date=March 4, 2003 | access-date=2008-09-18 | archive-date=April 17, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417034137/http://edition.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/04/second.wind/index.html | url-status=dead }}</ref>

Several aspects of the film have become [[Internet meme]]s. A scene in which the three main characters systematically destroy a dysfunctional printer has been widely parodied. [[Swingline]] introduced a red stapler to its product line after the Milton character used one painted in that color in the film. Judge's 2009 film ''[[Extract (film)|Extract]]'' is also set in an office and was intended as a companion piece to ''Office Space''.

==Plot==
<!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, plot summaries for feature films should be set between 400 to 700 words. -->
Peter Gibbons is a frustrated and unmotivated programmer who works at Texas-based software company Initech. Unable to stand up to his overcritical girlfriend, Anne, he is in love with local waitress Joanna, but is afraid to speak to her. He is friends with co-workers Samir Nagheenanajar, who hates that no one can pronounce his last name, and Michael Bolton, who hates having the same name as [[Michael Bolton|the famous singer]]. Other co-workers include Milton Waddams, a meek [[wikt:collator|collator]] who mumbles to himself and is mostly ignored by the rest of the office; and Tom Smykowski, a jaded [[product manager]] who is routinely scared of being fired. The staff suffers under top-heavy, callous management, especially from vice president [[Bill Lumbergh]], a tedious micromanager who regularly humiliates Milton and makes Peter work almost every weekend. Peter hates Lumbergh but avoids confronting him.

Anne persuades Peter to attend an occupational [[hypnotherapy]] session led by Dr. Swanson. Swanson hypnotizes Peter and tells him to feel relaxed and stop caring about his job until he snaps his fingers. However, Swanson suddenly dies of a heart attack before snapping Peter out of it. Peter sleeps soundly through the next day, ignoring phone calls from Lumbergh and Anne, who angrily breaks up with him while confirming his suspicions that she has been cheating on him.

Two business consultants are brought in to help the company [[layoff|downsize]], and Peter begins dating Joanna. She works at a chain restaurant where she is required to wear "pieces of flair": buttons allowing employees to "express themselves". Her boss hassles her for not wearing more than the required minimum.

Peter eventually shows up to work and casually disregards office protocol, stealing Lumbergh's parking space, violating the dress code, and removing a cubicle wall that blocks his view out the window. Impressed by Peter's frank insights into Initech's problems, the consultants promote him despite Lumbergh's misgivings; however, they lay off Michael, Samir, and Tom. While attempting to do the same to Milton, they learn that he had already been laid off five years prior but had not been notified and was still receiving his salary due to a payroll glitch. They fix the glitch and stop Milton's salary payments without telling him, while Lumbergh continues to mistreat him by confiscating his beloved red stapler and repeatedly relocating his desk, eventually down to the basement.

Tired of their own mistreatment, Peter, Michael, and Samir decide to take revenge by infecting Initech's accounting system with a [[computer virus]] designed by Michael to divert huge numbers of [[Salami slicing tactics|fractions of pennies]] into a bank account. Peter successfully installs the virus, and on Michael and Samir's last day, he steals a frequently malfunctioning printer, which the three proceed to destroy in a field. They also learn that Tom attempted suicide prior to being laid off, but then changed his mind, and in the process got into an accident that resulted in him winning a large amount of money in damages from a lawsuit. At a party at Tom's house, Peter hears rumors from a colleague that Joanna had slept with Lumbergh. When Joanna confirms this, a heated exchange leads to them breaking up. Frustrated with her job, Joanna quits in response to another lecture about her lack of "flair", giving her boss the middle finger as she does so.

On Monday, Peter discovers that a [[Software bug|bug]] in Michael's code has caused the virus to steal over $300,000 across the weekend, which guarantees they will be caught and sent to federal prison. Unable to conceal the crime, Peter decides to accept full responsibility, writing a confession and slipping it under Lumbergh's office door after hours, along with [[traveler's check]]s for the stolen money. Peter learns that the 'Lumbergh' with whom Joanna slept was Ron Lumbergh, another software engineer unrelated to Bill Lumbergh. He meets Joanna, who has started a new job at another restaurant, to apologize, and they reconcile.

The next morning, Peter drives to Initech to turn himself in, but the problem has solved itself: Milton has committed arson and burned down the building as an act of revenge against the company. With the evidence of his crime destroyed, Peter begins his new job working in construction with his neighbor Lawrence, while Samir and Michael join Initech's rival, Initrode. Having found the traveler's checks, Milton escapes to Mexico but continues to be denied respect.

==Cast==
 <!-- opening title cards -->
* [[Ron Livingston]] as Peter Gibbons, a disgruntled programmer at Initech
* [[Jennifer Aniston]] as Joanna, a waitress at a Chotchkie's restaurant
* [[Stephen Root]] as Milton Waddams, a timid, mistreated Initech collator
* [[Gary Cole]] as [[Bill Lumbergh]], vice president of Initech
* [[John C. McGinley]] as Bob Slydell, a business consultant specializing in efficiency
* [[David Herman]] as Michael Bolton, one of Peter's friends and coworkers
* [[Ajay Naidu]] as Samir Nagheenanajar, one of Peter's friends and coworkers
* [[Diedrich Bader]] as Lawrence, Peter's next-door neighbor and a slovenly construction worker
* [[Mike McShane|Michael McShane]] (credited as Micheal McShane) as Dr. Swanson, an occupational hypnotherapist
* [[Richard Riehle]] as Tom Smykowski, a cynical Initech product manager
* [[Alexandra Wentworth]] as Anne, Peter's girlfriend who cheats on him
<!-- end opening title cards -->
<!-- additional names as listed in closing title cards -->
* [[Greg Pitts]] as Drew, a young Initech employee
* [[Paul Willson]] as Bob Porter, Bob Slydell's colleague
* [[Todd Duffey]] as Brian, Chotchkie's Waiter; an overly cheerful young man who works at Chotchkie's with Joanna
* [[Orlando Jones]] as Steve, a magazine salesman and former employee at Initrode
* [[Mike Judge]] as Stan, the manager of the Chotchkie's restaurant
* Joe Bays as Dom Portwoid, one of Peter's superiors at Initech

==Production==

===Development===
''Office Space'' originated in the series of three animated ''[[Milton (cartoon)|Milton]]'' [[short film]]s that Judge created about an office worker by that name. They first aired on ''[[Liquid Television]]'' and on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]''.<ref name="fierman">{{cite magazine | last = Fierman | first = Daniel | title = Judge's Dread | magazine = Entertainment Weekly | date = February 26, 1999 | url = https://ew.com/article/1999/02/19/mike-judge-takes-live-action/ | access-date = 2007-08-16 }}</ref> The inspiration came from a temp job which he had that involved alphabetizing purchase orders<ref name="beale">{{cite news | last = Beale | first = Lewis | title = Mr. Beavis Goes to Work | work = [[New York Daily News]] | date = February 21, 1999 | url =http://www.nydailynews.com/mr-beavis-work-irreverent-animator-s-newest-target-corporate-america-live-action-film-office-space-article-1.839280 | access-date =2013-05-03 }}</ref> and another job as an engineer for [[Parallax Graphics]] for three months in the [[San Francisco Bay Area]] during the 1980s,<ref name=Leckart2014>{{cite magazine | last=Leckart | first=Steven | date=April 2, 2014 | url=http://www.wired.com/2014/04/mike-judge-silicon-valley/ | title=Mike Judge Skewers Silicon Valley With the Satire of Our Dreams | magazine=Wired | publisher=Condé Nast | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140402203558/http://www.wired.com/2014/04/mike-judge-silicon-valley/ | archivedate=April 2, 2014}}</ref> "just in the heart of [[Silicon Valley]] and in the middle of that overachiever [[yuppie]] thing, it was just awful."<ref name="sherman">{{cite news | last = Sherman | first = Paul | title = Humorist is a good Judge of office angst | work = [[Boston Herald]] | date = February 21, 1999 }}</ref>

[[Peter Chernin]], head of [[20th Century Fox]], where Judge had a deal, wanted to make a film out of the Milton character,<ref name="EW oral history">{{cite news|last=Hunt|first=Stacey Wilson|title=The oral history of 'Office Space': Behind the scenes of the cult classic|url=https://ew.com/movies/2019/01/11/office-space-oral-history/|newspaper=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=January 11, 2019|access-date=February 3, 2019}}</ref> inspired by a former coworker of Judge's in Silicon Valley who had threatened to quit if the company moved his desk again.<ref name="NYTmag Judge article">{{cite news|last=Staley|first=Willy|title=The Bard of Suck|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/magazine/mike-judge-the-bard-of-suck.html|newspaper=[[The New York Times Magazine]]|date=April 13, 2017|access-date=February 21, 2019}}</ref> "You don't want to know what he does at home after work", Judge replied. Instead he suggested an [[ensemble cast]]–based film; someone at the studio responded with ''[[Car Wash (film)|Car Wash]]'' but "just set in an office."<ref name="sherman"/>

Milton was not the only character inspired by someone from Judge's past. During his jobs in Silicon Valley, where he barely made enough to afford his rent, he had a neighbor who was an auto mechanic. Not only did the man make more money, he had flexible work hours and seemed to Judge to be much more content with his life and work than he himself was. The neighbor inspired Lawrence, Peter's neighbor in the film.<ref name="NYTmag Judge article" />

The setting of the film reflects a prevailing trend that Judge observed in the United States. "It seems like every city now has these identical office parks with identical adjoining chain restaurants", he said in an interview.<ref name="fierman"/> "There were a lot of people who wanted me to set this movie in [[Wall Street]], or like the movie ''[[Brazil (1985 film)|Brazil]]'', but I wanted it very unglamorous, the kind of bleak work situation like I was in".<ref name="beale"/>

Judge wrote a [[Film treatment|treatment]] in 1996, and the script after [[King of the Hill season 1|the first season]] of ''[[King of the Hill]]''. Fox president [[Tom Rothman]] was happy with the draft as he was looking for lighter material to balance the [[event movie]]s like ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'' that dominated the studio's output at the time. He considered it "the most brilliant workplace satire I'd ever read".<ref name="EW oral history" /> Despite that, Judge hated the ending and wished he could have completely rewritten the third act.<ref name="Valby" />

===Casting===
[[File:Jennifer Aniston 2011 (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Jennifer Aniston]] was cast in ''Office Space'' to feature a recognizable star.]]
[[David Herman]] was the only actor Judge had in mind for a specific part: Michael Bolton. Herman had been trying to leave his seven-year contract at ''[[MADtv]]'', but the show would not let him. So, at its next [[table reading]], he managed to get himself fired by screaming all his lines. [[Greg Daniels]] said they could always find a place for him on ''King of the Hill'', where he had been doing some voice work; soon after he read Judge's ''Office Space'' script and was delighted with it.<ref name="EW oral history" />

At the first read-through of the script, Judge was pleased with Herman's performance, and felt [[Stephen Root]] improved on his own take on Milton, but was not happy with the rest of the cast. He considered abandoning the film, but Rothman said it worked and just needed the right actors.<ref name="EW oral history" /> According to Judge, while Fox at first told him to just get the best actors possible since the film's budget would not be large enough to consider [[bankable star]]s, the studio soon changed its mind.

In the wake of the success of ''[[Good Will Hunting]]'', he was advised to get that film's stars, [[Ben Affleck]] and [[Matt Damon]]. Again, he almost changed his mind about the film (Rothman said in 2019 that while [[A-list]] stars are often unlikely to take roles in low-budget productions, those films should nevertheless make the effort to attract them). He had agreed to meet with Damon in New York, but then [[Ron Livingston]]'s agent asked if his client could audition for the lead. [[Casting director]] Nancy Klopper was impressed, and after Judge saw the video he told the studio that he wanted Livingston in the part.<ref name="EW oral history" />

[[Jennifer Aniston]] was cast to accommodate Fox's desire to have a recognizable star in the film, although they were concerned that her part was so small; the subplot involving her battle with her boss over her "flair" was added as a result and she was written out of the sex-dream sequence, along with dialogue indicating she actually had slept with Lumbergh. However, she had liked the script since she was not getting many other films like that at that point, and she had gone to the same high school as Herman, [[Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School]] in New York. [[Kate Hudson]] also read for the part.<ref name="EW oral history" />

After casting the [[Indian American]] [[Ajay Naidu]] as Samir, who had originally been written as [[Iranian American|Iranian]], the character was rewritten to be [[Jordanian American|Jordanian]], and Naidu worked with a [[dialect coach]] to get the accent right. [[John C. McGinley]] auditioned for Lumbergh, but was ultimately cast as Slydell. Judge says that after [[Gary Cole]] read for Lumbergh, there was no doubt as to who would play him. "He made the character 10 times funnier." A casting search in Texas yielded [[Greg Pitts]] for Drew, but no one who could play the Chotchkie's manager, so Judge took that role himself.<ref name="EW oral history" />

===Principal photography===

Judge made the transition from animation to live-action with the help of [[Tim Suhrstedt]], the film's [[director of photography]], who taught him about lenses and where to put the camera. Judge says, "I had a great crew, and it's good going into it not pretending you're an expert".<ref name="beale"/> [[Principal photography]] began in Texas in May 1998.<ref name="EW oral history" /><ref>Macor, A., 2010. Chainsaws, Slackers, and Spy Kids: Thirty Years of Filmmaking in Austin, Texas.</ref>

Several issues arose during filming. By the third day of shooting, temperatures had risen to over 100&nbsp;°F (38&nbsp;°C), and smoke from fires in Mexico was filling the sky over [[Austin, Texas|Austin]], making it white. Suhrstedt says that forced the postponement of the opening traffic-jam scene until it cleared.<ref name="EW oral history" />

Studio executives who saw the [[dailies]] were not happy with the footage that Judge was getting. Judge quoted studio executives as stating, "More energy! More energy! We gotta reshoot it! You're failing! You're failing!"<ref name="Valby">{{cite web |last1=Valby |first1=Kate |title=The Fax of Life |url=https://ew.com/article/2003/05/23/fax-life/ |website=EW.com |publisher=Entertainment Weekly` |access-date=10 August 2021 |ref=Valby |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190622041815/https://ew.com/article/2003/05/23/fax-life/ |archive-date=June 22, 2019}}</ref> They also asked for Livingston to smile more. But at that point, only the early scenes had been filmed; Judge told the studio that happier scenes would come later. Livingston says he heard they believed he was on drugs and were considering firing him.<ref name="EW oral history" />

In addition, Fox did not like the [[gangsta rap]] music used in the film.<ref name="Valby"/> Rothman told him he had to take it out, and Judge said after production he would do so if the next [[focus group]] also disliked it. A young man in that focus group said the fact that the characters worked in an office but listened to gangsta rap was one of the things he liked about the movie, and Rothman relented.<ref name="EW oral history" />

The scene where Peter, Michael and Samir take their office printer out into a field and batter it to pieces was inspired by Judge's experience with his own printer while writing ''[[Beavis and Butt-Head Do America]]''. He told his cowriter [[Joe Stillman]] that he was so frustrated by it that when he was done with the script, he planned to take it out into a field and destroy it while videotaping the process. Suhrstedt says the whole sequence was largely improvised, but Naidu adds that they were trying to do it in a way that evoked how the [[Italian-American Mafia|Mafia]] would do it to someone it wanted to punish or kill; Livingston thus played his part like the "[[Boss (crime)|don]]", circling behind Naidu and Herman while they struck the blows with bat, feet and fists. Years afterward, Naidu says, he met some actual mafiosi in New York who told him that they were huge fans of the film, and the scene was "authentic".<ref name="EW oral history" />

McGinley says the film contains many improvised moments. "It was like [[jazz]] on that set". One example he recalled was when [[Paul Willson]] as Bob Porter cannot pronounce Samir's last name: "Naga ... Naga ... well, not gonna work here anymore anyway." Naidu, for his part, improvised the [[break dancing]], which he did with local friends after shooting his scenes during the day.<ref name="EW oral history" />

The improvisation also helped solve some problems with the script. Originally Bolton was to refer to [[Michael Bolton|the singer he shared his name with]] as a "no-singing asshole". However, Herman recalled, it was decided that the film could not say that since it would imply he did not sing his own songs, so he came up with "no-talent ass-clown".<ref name="EW oral history" />

The Alligator Grill, on South Lamar Blvd, Austin, was used for the interior shots of Chotchkies, Joanna's workplace.<ref name=theringer /><ref>
* https://atxgossip.com/movie-made-in-austin-office-space-filming-locations/
* https://web.archive.org/web/20231019092824/https://1063thebuzz.com/office-space-restaurant/
* https://web.archive.org/web/20011202092627/https://www.alligatorgrill.com/
* https://www.ionart.com/signs-1/alligator-grill
* https://moviemaps.org/locations/11h
</ref>

===Production design===

Judge was very exacting in his demands for how the Initech set looked; he said regularly that it had to seem "oppressive".<ref name=theringer >{{Cite news |last=Kring-Schreifels |first=Jake |date=2019-02-19 |title=Follow the Path of Least Resistance: An Oral History of 'Office Space' |url=https://www.theringer.com/movies/2019/2/19/18228673/office-space-oral-history |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219190920/https://www.theringer.com/movies/2019/2/19/18228673/office-space-oral-history |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-02-19 |access-date=2023-10-04  |website=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]] |language=en}}</ref> The production went as far as [[screen test|screen-testing]] different types of gray [[cubicle]]s; Judge also wanted the cubicles to be tall so that Lumbergh would have to lean in to be seen from Peter's desk.<ref name=theringer /> Considerable effort was also expended to making sure the [[TPS report#In popular culture|TPS reports]] looked realistic.<ref name="EW oral history" />

The glasses Root wore to play Milton had lenses so thick that he had to wear [[contact lens]]es to see through them. Even so, he still had no [[depth perception]]; he had to practice reaching for the stapler and was as a result grateful it had been painted red. [[Swingline]] provided the stapler after the filmmakers could not get permission to use either the Boston or [[Bostitch]] brands from their manufacturer.<ref name="EW oral history" />

==Release==

===Marketing===
Judge hated the [[One sheet#Cinema|onesheet poster]] that the studio created for ''Office Space'', which depicted an office worker completely covered in [[Post-it notes]]. He said, "People were like, 'What is this? A big bird? A mummy? A beekeeper?' And the tagline 'Work Sucks'? It looked like an [[Office Depot]] ad. I just hated it. I hated the trailers, too and the TV ads especially".<ref name="Valby"/> McGinley, too, felt it looked like [[Big Bird]] from the children's series ''[[Sesame Street]]'', and that he would not go to see such a film. For the home release Judge was upset that the same image was used, albeit with Milton peeking over the man from behind.<ref name="EW oral history" />

The studio also had a man live in a [[Plexiglas]] cube above [[Times Square]] for five days, who was broadcast live on the Internet as he answered calls and emails from people dissatisfied with their jobs.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2022-09-27|title=Office Guy: A Working Perspective|date=February 18, 1999|url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1999/2/18/office-guy-a-working-perspective-p/|website=[[The Harvard Crimson]]}}</ref> Livingston, when he visited the cube for press events, found that most reporters preferred to talk to the man in the cube and not him. He was not surprised, as tracking for the movie was not good and "there was a foregone conclusion that it wasn't going to open well." Producer [[Michael Rotenberg]] elaborated that "[i]t took a few research screenings to realize that audiences often have issues with satire."<ref name="EW oral history" />

Another problem that Rothman later conceded was that they could not put Aniston on the poster due to her small role.<ref name="EW oral history" /> Later he admitted that the marketing campaign did not work and said, "''Office Space'' isn't like ''[[American Pie (film)|American Pie]]''. It doesn't have the kind of jokes you put in a 15-second television spot of somebody getting hit on the head with a frying pan. It's sly. And let me tell you, sly is hard to sell".<ref name="Valby"/>

===Box office===
''Office Space'' was released on February 19, 1999, at the end of the release calendar's "[[dump months]]", in 1,740 theaters, grossing $4.2 million on its opening weekend. That was eighth overall and second for new releases after ''[[October Sky]]''.<ref name="mojo opening weekend">{{cite web|title=February 19-21, 1999|website=[[Box Office Mojo]]|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?view=&yr=1999&wknd=08&p=.htm|access-date=February 5, 2019}}</ref> Herman said he was elated after seeing the film in [[Los Angeles]] and hearing it had made $7 million, until friends more familiar with the movie business told him that was considered a poor performance.<ref name="EW oral history" />

Suhrstedt saw it later in [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], and the theater was almost full. He assured Judge that [[word of mouth]] would slowly increase the audience. However, in early March, Fox pulled it from three-quarters of the screens it had been on after it barely made a million dollars that weekend. The movie's grosses continued to decline precipitously, and after the end of March, when it pulled in less than $40,000 from 75 screens, it was pulled from release altogether.<ref name="mojo">{{cite news|title=Office Space|work=Box Office Mojo|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=officespace.htm|access-date=February 5, 2019}}</ref> According to Judge, a studio executive blamed the movie exclusively for the failure, telling him "Nobody wants to see your little movie about ordinary people and their boring little lives."<ref name=Extract>{{cite web| url = http://www.wildaboutmovies.com/behind_the_scenes/Extract-BEHINDTHESCENES.php| title = Extract-Behind the Scenes| work = wildaboutmovies.com| author = Nasson, Tim| date = August 13, 2009| access-date = February 7, 2019| archive-date = June 30, 2017| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170630070806/http://www.wildaboutmovies.com/behind_the_scenes/Extract-BEHINDTHESCENES/| url-status = dead| df = mdy-all}}</ref>

It went on to make $10.8 million in North America.<ref name="mojo" /> The international release brought an additional $2 million. On home release, $8 million in [[DVD]], [[Blu-ray Disc]] and [[VHS]] sales<ref name="thenum" /> were sold at release as of April 2006.<ref name="Numbers2">{{cite web | url= https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Office-Space#tab=video-sales | title=Office Space – DVD sales | website=the-numbers.com | access-date=December 27, 2011}}</ref>

==Reception==
===Critical reception===
On the [[review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film has an approval rating of 81% based on 103 reviews and an average rating of 6.80/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Mike Judge lampoons the office grind with its inspired mix of sharp dialogue and witty one-liners."<ref>{{rotten-tomatoes|office_space|Office Space}}</ref> [[Metacritic]] gives the film a [[weighted average]] score of 68 out of 100 based on reviews from 31 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{Metacritic film|title=Office Space}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] during opening weekend gave the film an average grade of "C+" on a scale ranging from A+ to F.<ref>{{cite web |title= Cinemascore |url= https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |access-date= November 9, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181220122629/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |archive-date= December 20, 2018 |url-status= dead }}</ref>

[[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' gave the film three out of four stars and wrote that Judge "treats his characters a little like cartoon creatures. That works. Nuances of behavior are not necessary, because in the cubicle world every personality trait is magnified, and the captives stagger forth like grotesques."<ref>{{cite news|last=Ebert|first=Roger| author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Office Space|work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|date=February 19, 1999|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/office-space-1999|access-date=8 March 2021}}</ref> In his review for the ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'', [[Mick LaSalle]] writes, "Livingston is nicely cast as Peter, a young guy whose imagination and capacity for happiness are the very things making him miserable."<ref>{{cite news|last=LaSalle|first=Mick|title=Workers' Souls Lost In ''Space''|work=San Francisco Chronicle|date=February 19, 1999|url= https://www.sfgate.com/movies/article/Workers-Souls-Lost-In-Space-2946061.php|access-date=2008-09-18 }}</ref> In ''[[USA Today]]'', Susan Wloszczyna wrote, "If you've ever had a job, you'll be amused by this paean to peons."<ref>{{cite news|last=Wioszczyna|first=Susan|title=No Frills ''Office'' Party|work= USA Today |page=13.E |date=February 19, 1999 |url= https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/access/39122458.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Feb+19%2C+1999&author=Susan+Wloszczyna&pub=USA+TODAY&edition=&startpage=13.E&desc=No-frills+%27Office%27+party |access-date=2013-05-11 {{ProQuest|<!-- Add ProQuest data here --> }}|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630051750/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/access/39122458.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Feb+19,+1999&author=Susan+Wloszczyna&pub=USA+TODAY&edition=&startpage=13.E&desc=No-frills+'Office'+party|archive-date=30 June 2013}}{{subscription required|date=May 2013}}</ref>

[[Owen Gleiberman]] in ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' gave the film a "C" rating and criticized it for feeling "cramped and underimagined".<ref>{{cite magazine|last= Gleiberman|first=Owen|title=Office Space|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=March 5, 1999|url=https://ew.com/article/1999/03/05/office-space-2/|access-date=May 17, 2023 }}</ref> In his review for ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', Rick Groen wrote: "Perhaps his TV background makes him unaccustomed to the demands of a feature-length script (the ending seems almost panicky in its abruptness), or maybe he just succumbs to the lure of the easy yuk...what began as discomfiting satire soon devolves into silly farce."<ref>{{cite news|last=Groen|first=Rick|title=Workplace satire almost does the job |work=Globe and Mail |date=February 19, 1999 |location=Toronto |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/movie/MOVIEREVIEWS/19990219/TASPAC|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116181107/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/movie/MOVIEREVIEWS/19990219/TASPAC |archive-date=2009-01-16 |access-date=2008-09-18|url-status=dead}}</ref> In his review in ''[[The New York Times]]'', [[Stephen Holden]] wrote, "It has the loose-jointed feel of a bunch of sketches packed together into a narrative that doesn't gather much momentum."<ref>{{cite news|last=Holden|first=Stephen|title=Film Review; One Big Happy Family? No, Not At This Company|work=The New York Times|date=February 19, 1999|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/02/19/movies/film-review-one-big-happy-family-no-not-at-this-company.html |access-date=2013-05-03}}</ref>

In 2008, ''Entertainment Weekly'' named ''Office Space'' one of "The 100 best films from 1983 to 2008", ranking it at #73.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The New Classics: Movies |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=June 16, 2008 |issue=999–1000 |url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20207076_20207387_20207063,00.html |access-date=2013-05-03 |archive-date=June 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190619055930/https://ew.com/ew/article/0,,20207076_20207387_20207063,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Cult status===

Disappointed in the film's $12 million domestic gross, Judge decided to move on and began work on what eventually became ''[[Extract (film)|Extract]]'', a similarly themed followup to ''Office Space''. Fox suggested that next time, he pay more heed to the studio's casting suggestions. However, he soon learned that the film had not gone unnoticed within the industry. "[[Jim Carrey]] invited me to his house. [[Chris Rock]] left me the best voicemail ever. I had dinner with [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]]", who found the Michael Bolton character's anger "sexy", Judge said.<ref name="EW oral history" />

Four years later, Judge was working on the ''[[Idiocracy]]'' screenplay with [[Etan Cohen]]. During a break, the two went to an Austin [[Starbucks]], and the baristas were doing impressions of Lumbergh. Cohen asked Judge if they were only doing it because he was present, whereupon the barista turned around and asked the two if they had ever seen the movie.<ref name="EW oral history" />

Other cast members found the film had reached people when strangers began associating them with their characters. Cole, who had previously worked service jobs including bartending, said that he had not realized "the scope of the office audience" until a year after release, when people began shouting dialogue from the movie at him. Aniston says that even today, when she is eating "at a certain type of restaurant", people will ask if she likes their flair.

The [[cable television|cable]] channel [[Comedy Central]] premiered ''Office Space'' on August 5, 2001; that airing drew 1.4 million viewers. By 2003, the channel had broadcast the film another 35 times.<ref name="Valby3"/> These broadcasts helped develop the film's cult following; Livingston credits the regular airings the film received on Comedy Central for making ''Office Space'' a cult favorite: "It felt like it kind of went viral before that concept even existed."<ref name="EW oral history" />

Since then, Livingston has been approached by college students and office workers. He said, "I get a lot of people who say, 'I quit my job because of you.' That's kind of a heavy load to carry."<ref name="Valby3"/> Livingston says that people tell him watching ''Office Space'' made them feel better, which he still appreciates.<ref name="EW oral history" />

==Legacy==
[[File:StephenRootFeb09.jpg|thumb|right|Root at a 10th anniversary event|alt=A lightly bearded and bespectacled brown-haired middle-aged Caucasian man wearing a jacket and white shirt with an open collar looks to the camera's right]]
[[File:SXSW-2024-alih-OB7A0816-Office Space Reunion.jpg|thumb|right|Cast at a 25th anniversary reunion panel at South by Southwest 2024]]
''Office Space'' has become a [[cult following|cult classic]], selling well on home video and DVD.<ref name="Doty"/> {{As of|2003}}, it had sold 2.6 million copies on VHS and DVD.<ref name="Valby2">Valby 2003, p. 39.</ref> In the same year, it was in the top 20 best-selling Fox DVDs.<ref name="Valby3">Valby 2003, p. 42.</ref> {{As of|2006}}, it had sold over six million DVDs in the United States alone.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Barker|first1=Emily|title=13 Box Office Flops That Became Hugely Successful On DVD|url=https://www.nme.com/photos/13-box-office-flops-that-became-hugely-successful-on-dvd-1420911|access-date=28 January 2017|work=[[NME]]|date=21 October 2015}}</ref>

Four years after the film's release, Judge recalled that one of his [[assistant director]]s on the film told him they had gone out to eat at a [[TGI Fridays]] and noticed that the waitstaff were no longer wearing buttons on their uniforms, the "flair" Joanna quits her job over in the film. Asked why, the manager told him that after ''Office Space'' had come out, customers started making jokes about it, so the chain dropped the requirement from its dress code. "So, maybe I made the world a better place" he told ''[[Deadline Hollywood]]'' in 2014.<ref name="2014 Deadline Hollywood interview">{{cite interview |last=Judge|first=Mike|subject-link=Mike Judge|interviewer=Anthony D'Alessandro|title=Emmys: Mike Judge On How Viacom-Paramount Merger Influenced 'Silicon Valley' & 'Office Space's Impact On TGI Fridays|url=https://deadline.com/2014/06/mike-judge-silicon-valley-interview-making-of-787571/|publisher=[[Penske Media Corporation]]|date=June 14, 2014|work=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|access-date=February 21, 2019}}</ref>

In 2008, ''Entertainment Weekly'' ranked it fifth on its list "25 Great Comedies From the Past 25 Years", despite having originally given the film a poor review.<ref name="ewtop25">{{cite magazine | title=The Comedy 25: The Funniest Movies of the Past 25 Years | magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] | url=https://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20221235_21,00.html | date=August 27, 2008 | access-date=2008-08-27 | archive-date=October 21, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021061847/http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20221235_21,00.html | url-status=dead }}</ref><!-- possibly moved to this link https://ew.com/gallery/comedy-25-funniest-movies-past-25-years/ --> In February 2009, a reunion of many of the cast members took place at the [[Paramount Theatre (Austin, Texas)|Paramount Theatre]] in Austin to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the film.<ref name="Rolling Stone 10th anniversary story">{{cite magazine| url=https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/office-space-cast-reunite-at-10th-anniversary-screening-of-mike-judges-cult-film-20090209| title=Office Space' Cast Reunite at 10th Anniversary Screening of Mike Judge's Cult Film| first=Michael| last=Hoinski| date=February 2, 2009| magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]| access-date=February 7, 2019}}</ref><ref name="ktbc">{{cite news | title="Office Space" Turns 10 | publisher=KTBC | date=February 8, 2009|url= http://www.myfoxaustin.com/dpp/news/020809_office_space_turns_10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211131334/http://www.myfoxaustin.com/dpp/news/020809_office_space_turns_10 |archive-date=2009-02-11 | access-date=2013-05-11}}</ref> Rothman said in 2019 that despite his connection to several films that won the [[Academy Award for Best Picture]], he hopes ''Office Space'' will be mentioned before them in his [[obituary]].<ref name="EW oral history" />

"[''Office Space''] spoke to a generation in a way that few movies have," said [[John Altschuler]], who produced ''Extract'', Judge's later companion piece. "Nobody does this kind of material. It's all about the weirdness of real people in real life."<ref name=Extract/>

In a 2017 profile of Judge, ''[[New York Times Magazine]]'' writer Willy Staley observed that the film has been compared to [[Herman Melville]]'s short story "[[Bartleby, the Scrivener]]", in which a lawyer's clerk, like Peter, shows up at the office one day but declines all work, telling his boss "I would prefer not to". Staley's own high school English teacher, he recalled, brought up ''Office Space'' in class to get students to appreciate how tedious [[Franz Kafka]]'s work at an insurance company was. "It's such a brutal portrayal of workplace misery that its most useful points of comparison date back to when office culture was first unleashed on humanity."<ref name="NYTmag Judge article" />

The film was an influence on the creation of the television series ''[[Severance (TV series)|Severance]]'',<ref>{{cite news |last1=Stefansky |first1=Emma |title='Severance' Creator Dan Erickson Knows Exactly What the Goats Are For |url=https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/severance-creator-dan-erickson-finale-interview |work=[[thrillist]]}}</ref> and the comic book series ''[[Chew (comics)|Chew]]'', with the film's main characters cameoing in its third installment, ''[[Chew: Just Desserts|Just Desserts]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Cronin|first=Brian|date=February 12, 2015|title=Comic Book Easter Eggs – A Collection of ''Chew'' Easter Eggs!|url=https://www.cbr.com/comic-book-easter-eggs-a-collection-of-chew-easter-eggs|access-date=February 12, 2015|website=[[Comic Book Resources]]|language=en-us}}</ref>

In 2022 software engineer Ermenildo Valdez Castro was inspired by the movie ''Office Space'', conducting a similar scheme from the movie by editing code to divert shipping fees to a personal account. A report from the [[Seattle Police Department|Seattle police]] mentions that a folder named "OfficeSpace project" was found on Castro's work laptop and Castro admitted he was indeed inspired by the movie. Castro stole over $300,000 from the company [[Zulily]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/04/us/seattle-fraud-office-space.html | title='Office Space' Inspired Engineer's Theft Scheme, Police Say | work=The New York Times | date=January 4, 2023 | last1=Tumin | first1=Remy }}</ref>

In 2024 at the [[South by Southwest]] conference, there was an Office Space Reunion panel with Judge, Livingston, Root, Naidu and Herman.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Featured Session: Celebrating 25 Years of 'Office Space,' with Mike Judge, Cast, and The Hollywood Reporter |url=https://schedule.sxsw.com/2024/events/PP1145798 |access-date=2024-03-20 |website=SXSW 2024 Schedule |language=en}}</ref>

===In culture===
[[File:PC Load Letter.jpg|thumb|right|An actual PC LOAD LETTER error message|alt="PC LOAD LETTER" in a printer console's [[LED display]].]]
Several elements of the film have become [[meme]]s reused in other contexts. "[[TPS report]]" has come to connote pointless, [[busy work|mindless paperwork]],<ref>{{cite book| title=The Milkshake Moment: Overcoming Stupid Systems, Pointless Policies and Muddled Management to Realize Real Growth| first=Steven S.| last=Little| year=2008| page=51|publisher=[[John Wiley & Sons]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JodaaDKkd0YC&pg=PA51| isbn=978-0-470-25746-3}}</ref> and an example of "literacy practices" in the work environment that are "meaningless exercises imposed upon employees by an inept and uncaring management" and "relentlessly mundane and enervating".<ref>{{cite book| title=Popular Culture and Representations of Literacy| first1=Bronwyn T.| last1=Williams| first2=Amy A.| last2=Zenger| publisher=[[Routledge]]/[[Taylor & Francis]]| year=2007| page=61| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I0QJoEWyLD8C&pg=PA61| isbn=978-0-415-36095-1}}</ref> According to Judge, the abbreviation stood for "Test Program Set" in the movie.<ref name="Rolling Stone 10th anniversary story" /> The [[PC LOAD LETTER]] error message has likewise become a stand-in for any confusing, vague message from a computer, especially printers. The printer scene has been widely parodied, including by one U.S. presidential campaign, and the popularity of Milton's red stapler led the manufacturer to make a real one for sale.<ref name="EW oral history" />
{{external media
| float  = right
| width  = 300
| video1 = "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03lrL9CFWxM ''Office Space'' with Michael Bolton]"
}}
The film is credited with coining the now-popular [[slang]] term "ass clown", from one of the characters using it to refer to singer Michael Bolton.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2467219/how-office-space-coined-the-term-ass-clown|title=How Office Space Coined The Term Ass Clown|author1=Nick Evans|date=February 20, 2019|website=Cinemablend}}</ref> In 2015, the comedy website [[Funny or Die]] put together several videos in which it spliced in the actual Michael Bolton over Herman in scenes from the film. Most of them were ones that referenced the confusion coming from the character and the singer having the same name. Bolton performed the scenes exactly as Herman had, with one exception: in his conversation with Samir, he [[breaking the fourth wall|turned to the camera]] and substituted the words "extremely talented" for "no-talent" before "ass-clown".<ref name="Rolling Stone Michael Bolton">{{cite news|last=Blistein|first=Jon|title=Michael Bolton Plays Michael Bolton in 'Office Space' Homage|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/watch-michael-bolton-play-michael-bolton-in-office-space-homage-89440/|newspaper=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=March 10, 2015|access-date=February 7, 2019}}</ref>

====Printer scene====

Before the 2009 Austin reunion screening a printer was destroyed outside the theater, in reference to the scene in the film during which Peter, Michael, and Samir destroy the dysfunctional printer on the latter two's final day at Initech<ref>{{cite news|last=Baumgarten|first=Marjorie|title=Office Spaced in Austin|url=https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/screens/2009-02-11/739833/|newspaper=[[The Austin Chronicle]]|date=February 11, 2009|access-date=February 6, 2019}}</ref> That scene has frequently been parodied; often by amateurs, using a similar electronic device, in an open space somewhere, emulating the original's character [[Blocking (stage)|blocking]], camera angles and moves, [[sound effect]]s and use of [[slow motion]], all set to [[Geto Boys]]' "Still".<ref name="YouTube search results page">{{cite web|title=''Office Space'' printer scene parodies|url=https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=office+space+printer+scene+parodies|website=[[YouTube]]|date=February 6, 2019|access-date=February 6, 2019}}</ref>

The Fox animated series ''[[Family Guy]]'' did its own parody of the scene in 2008, during [[Family Guy (season 7)|the show's seventh season]]. In "[[I Dream of Jesus]]", the season's second episode, [[Brian Griffin|Brian]] and [[Stewie Griffin]] (both voiced by [[Seth MacFarlane]]), tired of [[Peter Griffin]] constantly playing [[The Trashmen]]'s "[[Surfin' Bird]]", steal his [[Phonograph record|45 rpm]] [[Single (music)|single]] of the song and demolish it in a similar scene. For television, a clean version of "Still" had to be used.<ref name="Family Guy">{{cite web|last=Haque|first=Ashan|url=http://tv.ign.com/articles/916/916389p1.html|title=Family Guy: "I Dream of Jesus" Review|access-date=September 14, 2009|website=[[IGN]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807102720/http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/10/06/family-guy-i-dream-of-jesus-review|archive-date=August 7, 2016}}</ref>

During the campaign for the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nomination in the [[2016 United States presidential election|2016 presidential election]], Texas senator [[Ted Cruz]] ran a [[political advertisement]] parodying the scene, showing an impersonator of likely [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee [[Hillary Clinton]] and two assistants destroying [[Hillary Clinton email controversy|her personal email server]] with a baseball bat in an open field.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Krieg|first1=Gregory|title=Cruz mocks Clinton email controversy with 'Office Space' spoof ad|url=https://www.cnn.com/2016/02/12/politics/ted-cruz-hillary-clinton-office-space-ad/|access-date=27 March 2016|publisher=CNN|date=12 February 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=New Ted Cruz Ad Spoofs "Office Space" In Clinton Server Attack|url=http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2016/02/12/new_ted_cruz_ad_spoofs_office_space_in_clinton_attack.html |access-date=March 27, 2016|publisher=RealClear Politics|date=February 12, 2016}}</ref>

==== Red stapler ====
[[File:Stapler-swingline-red.jpg|thumb|right|[[Swingline]] made a red stapler in response to demand created by the film.|alt=A small red stapler with the badge reading "Swingline" atop, seen from above on a white background with shadow at the top of the image]]
Stephen Root says he realized the movie's impact when people started asking him to sign their staplers. The red Swingline stapler featured prominently in the film was not available until April 2002 when the company released it in response to repeated requests by fans of the film. Its appearance in the film was achieved by taking a standard Swingline stapler and spray-painting it red.<ref name="Valby3"/> Root says when he shows up on sets today, the crew has usually ordered several boxes of red Swingline staplers and left them waiting for him.<ref name="EW oral history" />

==In other media==
===Musical===
The film has been adapted to a [[Musical theatre|musical]] several times.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://chicagoreader.com/arts-culture/cubicle-an-office-space-musical/|title=Cubicle! An Office Space Musical!|first=Jennifer|last=Vanasco|date=December 1, 2005}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2010/11/office-space-the-musical.html|title=Office Space: The Musical|first=Adam|last=Frucci|date=November 11, 2010|website=Vulture}}</ref>

===Video game===
[[Kongregate]] released a mobile game based on the film, titled ''Office Space: Idle Profits'', on [[iOS]] and [[Android (operating system)|Android]] in 2017. It was a [[free-to-play]] [[Incremental game|idle clicker]] that offered [[in-app purchases]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sowden|first1=Emily|title=Screw your bosses over in the clicker Office Space: Idle Profits, out now on iOS and Android|url= https://www.pocketgamer.com/articles/073717/screw-your-bosses-over-in-the-clicker-office-space-idle-profits-out-now-on-ios-and-android/ |website=Pocket Gamer|date=April 20, 2017 |access-date=20 June 2017}}</ref> In 2022 it was shut down.

===Soundtrack===
{{Infobox album
| name         = Office Space: Motion Picture Soundtrack
| type         = soundtrack
| artist       = Various artists
| cover        =
| alt          =
| released     = February 18, 1999
| recorded     =
| studio       =
| genre        = [[Hip hop music|Hip hop]]
| length       = {{Duration|m=44|s=35}}
| label        = [[Interscope Records|Interscope]]
| producer     = {{hlist|[[Karyn Rachtman]] <small>(exec.)</small>|[[Mike Judge]] <small>(exec.)</small>|[[N.O. Joe]]|[[J Dilla|Jay Dee]]|John Bido|[[John Forté]]|[[Junior Reid]]|[[Kool Keith]]|[[KutMasta Kurt]]|[[Den Gale Pose|Madness 4 Real]]|Nature's Fynest|[[Quincy Jones III]]|[[Salaam Remi]]|[[Scarface (rapper)|Scarface]]}}
}}
{{music ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/office-space-mw0000602579|title=Office Space - Original Soundtrack {{!}} Songs, Reviews, Credits|last=Bregman|first=Adam|website=[[AllMusic]]|language=en-us|access-date=May 12, 2019}}</ref>
}}
;Track listing
{{Track listing
| all_writing   =
| extra_column  = Performer(s)
| title1        = Shove This Jay-Oh-Bee
| note1         = contains portions of "[[Take This Job and Shove It]]" by [[Johnny Paycheck]], 1977
| writer1       = {{hlist|[[Canibus|Germaine Williams]]|[[Salaam Remi]]|[[David Allan Coe]]}}
| extra1        = [[Canibus]] with [[Biz Markie]]
| length1       = 4:21
| title2        = [[Fantastic, Vol. 2|Get Dis Money]]
| writer2       = {{hlist|R.L. Altman III|[[Baatin|Titus Glover]]|[[J Dilla|James Yancey]]}}
| extra2        = [[Slum Village]]
| length2       = 3:36
| title3        = Get Off My Elevator
| writer3       = {{hlist|[[Kool Keith|Keith Thornton]]|[[KutMasta Kurt|Kurt Matlin]]}}
| extra3        = [[Kool Keith]]
| length3       = 3:46
| title4        = [[Big Boss Man (song)|Big Boss Man]]
| note4         = cover of [[Jimmy Reed]], 1960
| writer4       = {{hlist|[[Luther Dixon]]|Al Smith}}
| extra4        = [[Junior Reid]]
| length4       = 3:46
| title5        = [[9 to 5 (Dolly Parton song)|9-5]]
| note5         = cover of [[Dolly Parton]], 1980
| writer5       = [[Dolly Parton]]
| extra5        = Lisa Stone
| length5       = 3:40
| title6        = Down for Whatever
| note6         = from ''[[Lethal Injection (album)|Lethal Injection]]'', 1993
| writer6       = {{hlist|[[Ice Cube|O'Shea Jackson Sr.]]|Jesper Dahl|Lasse Bavngaard|Nicholas Kvaran|Rasmus Berg}}
| extra6        = [[Ice Cube]]
| length6       = 4:40
| title7        = [[Damn It Feels Good to Be a Gangsta]]
| note7         = from ''[[Uncut Dope: Geto Boys' Best]]'', 1992
| writer7       = {{hlist|[[Scarface (rapper)|Brad Jordan]]|John Okuribido|[[James Prince]]}}
| extra7        = [[Geto Boys]]
| length7       = 5:09
| title8        = Home
| writer8       = {{hlist|Benny Wise|C. Hernandez|N. Vasquez|[[John Forté]]}}
| extra8        = Blackman, Destruct & Icon
| length8       = 4:22
| title9        = No Tears
| writer9       = {{hlist|Brad Jordan|[[N.O. Joe|Joseph Johnson]]}}
| note9         = from ''[[The Diary (Scarface album)|The Diary]]'', 1994
| extra9        = [[Scarface (rapper)|Scarface]]
| length9       = 2:27
| title10       = Still
| note10        = from ''[[The Resurrection (Geto Boys album)|The Resurrection]]'', 1996
| writer10      = {{hlist|[[Willie D|William Dennis]]|Brad Jordan|Joseph Johnson}}
| extra10       = Geto Boys
| length10      = 4:03
| title11       = Mambo #8
| note11        = from ''Pérez Prado Plays Mucho Mambo For Dancing'', 1952
| writer11      = [[Pérez Prado]]
| extra11       = [[Pérez Prado]]
| length11      = 2:06
| title12       = Peanut Vendor
| note12        = from ''Havana, 3 A.M.'', 1956
| writer12      = [[Moises Simons]]
| extra12       = Pérez Prado
| length12      = 2:39
| total_length  = 44:35
}}

==Possible sequels==

Shortly after the release of ''Office Space'', Judge, despite his disappointment at the movie's lackluster box office, began writing the script for ''[[Extract (film)|Extract]]'', which he describes as a companion piece. The studio later asked him to put it aside to work on ''[[Idiocracy]]'', which it believed would be more commercial. After that film, like ''Office Space'', failed at the box office but became a cult favorite, Judge returned to ''Extract'' and it was released in 2009. It similarly makes light of workplace dysfunction, but from the perspective of a manager rather than a worker.<ref name=Extract />

"There's been talk of doing more with ''Office Space'', as a show or sequel, but it's never seemed right," Judge said ahead of the film's 20th anniversary. As for the former possibility, he recalled that because of the film, [[NBC]] offered him the chance to shape [[The Office (US TV series)|the American version]] of the British sitcom ''[[The Office (UK TV series)|The Office]]'', which similarly bases its humor in depictions of the absurdity of white-collar work and its effect on those who do it. Among the material the network sent, however, were some reviews, one of which said the series "succeeds where movies like ''Office Space'' failed." Judge passed on the offer.<ref name="EW oral history" />

==See also==
{{Portal|1990s|Business and economics|Comedy|Film|United States|Texas}}
* [[1999 in film]]
* [[List of American films of 1999]]
* [[List of comedy films of the 1990s]]
* [[List of cult films]]
* [[List of Jennifer Aniston performances]]
* [[Mike Judge#Filmography|Mike Judge filmography]]
* ''[[Clockwatchers]]'', 1997 comedy-drama about four female office temps with similar themes
* ''[[Dilbert]]'', comic strip with similar characters, setting and themes
* ''[[Silicon Valley (TV series)|Silicon Valley]]'', comedy series created by Judge set at tech companies
* [[Bullshit job]]s, a concept developed by [[David Graeber]] which describes meaningless office work
* [[Slacker]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite news|last=Hunt|first=Stacey Wilson|title=The oral history of 'Office Space': Behind the scenes of the cult classic|url=https://ew.com/movies/2019/01/11/office-space-oral-history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190111211312/https://ew.com/movies/2019/01/11/office-space-oral-history/|url-status=dead|archive-date=2019-01-11|newspaper=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|date=January 11, 2019}}
* {{Cite news |last=Kring-Schreifels |first=Jake |date=2019-02-19 |title=Follow the Path of Least Resistance: An Oral History of 'Office Space' |url=https://www.theringer.com/movies/2019/2/19/18228673/office-space-oral-history |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219190920/https://www.theringer.com/movies/2019/2/19/18228673/office-space-oral-history |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-02-19 |website=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]] |language=en}}

==External links==
{{sister project links|display=''Office Space''|d=Q1044523|n=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|wikt=no|s=no|species=no|c=no}}
* {{IMDb title|0151804|Office Space}}
* {{TCMDb title|443680|Office Space}}
* {{AFI film|61256|Office Space}}

{{Mike Judge}}
{{Critique of work}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1999 films]]
[[Category:1999 black comedy films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:1990s satirical films]]
[[Category:20th Century Fox films]]
[[Category:American black comedy films]]
[[Category:American business films]]
[[Category:American satirical films]]
[[Category:Comedy film soundtracks]]
[[Category:English-language black comedy films]]
[[Category:Fiction about malware]]
[[Category:Films about arson]]
[[Category:Films about companies]]
[[Category:Films about criticism and refusal of work]]
[[Category:Films about hypnosis]]
[[Category:Films directed by Mike Judge]]
[[Category:Films scored by John Frizzell (composer)]]
[[Category:Films set in offices]]
[[Category:Films set in Texas]]
[[Category:Films shot in Austin, Texas]]
[[Category:Films shot in Dallas]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Mike Judge]]
[[Category:Hip-hop soundtracks]]
[[Category:Interscope Records soundtracks]]
[[Category:Termination of employment in popular culture]]
[[Category:Workplace comedy films]]
[[Category:Works about computer hacking]]
[[Category:1990s business films]]