'The Office': Harvey Keitel is a wanted man

"The Office" executive producer Paul Lieberstein thinks he has the perfect replacement for Steve Carell come next season: Harvey Keitel.

Wait -- Harvey Keitel? Mr. White, Gene Hunt, "Bad Lieutenant" Harvey Keitel?

"He's probably the only guy who can do it, and he's doing TV now," Lieberstein says in an interview with E! Online, noting that Keitel starred in ABC's "Life on Mars" a couple seasons ago as the aforementioned Gene Hunt.

"He's a real tough guy, but I saw him in 'Life on Mars' and I saw a lot more comedy in his work, just little slivers of it, little things he would do that made me think he's capable of a lot more," Lieberstein says.

There is a catch: Lieberstein has yet to speak with Keitel or any of his reps about any kind of involvement with "The Office." The upside, though, is that he has a good amount of time to get in touch with Keitel. Carell is sticking around through the coming season (which premieres Sept. 23), and whoever takes over as branch manager when Michael Scott leaves won't be coming in until later.

And the more we think about Keitel as a boss, the more we like it. It's true that he showed a flair for comedy in "Life on Mars," but our minds drifted back a little further to his brief but brilliant role in "Pulp Fiction." The idea of "The Office" being run by the man who was Winston Wolfe seems like a pretty good one to us. Take a look (some NSFW language):