Spinoff for "The Office" in the works at NBC

Actor Rainn Wilson arrives for the opening night premiere of ''The Union'' during the 10th annual Tribeca Film Festival in New York April 20, 2011.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Quirky workplace TV comedy "The Office" may be headed for greener pastures.

A source close to the NBC show said on Thursday that the network was working on a possible spinoff involving actor Rainn Wilson's character Dwight Schrute going back to his family's farm.

No deals have been signed yet and NBC declined to comment.

But industry website Deadline Hollywood said the proposed show would see Dwight, who was dismayed at being passed over for the job of Dunder Mifflin office manager last year, living at his family's beet farm and bed and breakfast. The show could include multiple generations of his family struggling to survive and stay together.

Deadline said that if all goes well, the new show could be launched in early 2013.

"The Office", based on the British mockumentary of the same name created by comic Ricky Gervais, has been a critical and ratings success for NBC for eight years, winning Emmys, acting and writing awards.

But ratings have slipped by about one million regular viewers since the departure last year of lead actor Steve Carell, who portrayed manager Michael Scott.

(Reporting By Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)