LA Times:
Yet such discomfort also provides great fodder for his latest comedy, “Extras,” which has aired in England and returns for its second season in the U.S. on Sunday on HBO. Conceived as a sardonic look at unsuccessful actors trying to make it in the movie business, the series takes a new turn this season when a sitcom script written by the long-struggling Andy Millman, played by Ricky Gervais, is picked up by the BBC.
Andy’s exuberance is quickly diminished when network executives proceed to dumb down the workplace comedy, titled “When the Whistle Blows.” They make him don a curly black wig and outsized glasses for his part as a dim factory boss. They insist his character utter an annoying catchphrase whenever someone appears to have cracked a joke: “Are you having a laugh?”
Critics pan “When the Whistle Blows,” which is nevertheless a popular hit, a fact that only further depresses Andy. In one scene, he is accosted at a pub by fans of the sitcom who urge him to deliver his character’s catchphrase, which he does with no small amount of self-loathing.
“The big theme of it, I suppose, is ‘Don’t compromise,’ ” Gervais said. “Be careful what you wish for. Success without respect is nothing.”
Here.