Ricky Gervais ascends to the 'Afterlife' with new series project

Ricky Gervais has heard a higher calling for his next TV project.

The creator of "The Office" and "Extras" is working with former "Dexter" showrunner Clyde Phillips on a project called "Afterlife," about an atheist who dies and finds himself in heaven. EW first reported the news, and Gervais confirmed it on his blog.

"'Dexter' has consistently been my favourite show of the last 5 years," he writes. "When I first saw Clyde's name all over it I knew I had to work with him one day. I found out he was also a fan of my work and we became friends on e-mail and through short conversations on various red carpets. We finally started working on an idea this year and we really hit it off. I am so excited about this project."

Gervais is also working on a comedy called "Life's Too Short" with Stephen Merchant and Warwick Davis, which will debut on HBO next year. He and Phillips are currently writing a pilot for "Afterlife," and Gervais will also play a small on-camera part, EW says. The project isn't set up at a studio yet.