"The Office" indeed was a great thing. Even though the sitcom ended not less than seven
years ago, this mockumentary and its characters still warm our hearts.
It's not only us but also the cast members who can't get over the show. The actors who
portrayed Dunder Mifflin employees are actively involved in many other great projects. Still,
they keep surprising us by very curious "The Office"-related details.
Are the rumours that NBC forced Steve Carell to leave "The Office" true? Why did John Krasinski
keep his waiter's job even after getting a part on the show? Is BJ Novak the real father
of Mindy Kaling's child? Does Jenna Fischer still wear Pam's engagement ring?
Now that you're all ears let's dig deeper into the ocean of spoilers… We're joking,
of course. But seriously, be aware of spoilers. We are about to share the most recent updates
on the lives of “The Office” cast, but first, subscribe to Rumour Juice YouTube channel
for other exciting celebrity stories.
STEVE CARELL Basically, it was the only question people
asked Steve Carell, a.k.a. Michael Scott, during his 2018 appearance on Saturday Night
Live.
Up until now, it was an official comment on Steve Carell's departure from "The Office"
in Season 7. The actor's contract was up, and he looked forward to focusing on his movie
career. It was solely Carell's decision not to prolong the contract. However, it has turned
out recently there could have been something else to it.
In March 2020, Andy Greene, senior writer at "Rolling Stone," published a book called
"The Office: The Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s". Greene interviewed nearly
everybody who worked on the show – both on- and offscreen. Producer Teri Weinberg
said that Carell (quote) "made the decision to leave on his own." But "The Office" hairstylist
Kim Ferry mentioned that Carell did not want to quit portraying Michael Scott.
"He had told the network he was going to sign on for another couple of years. He was willing
to and his agent was willing to."
According to the book, Carell told BBC News back in 2010 that Season 7 would probably
be his last year, but he (quote) “didn’t mean it”. Then, when his contract was up,
nobody at NBC contacted the actor asking him to stay on the show. Here's how another producer,
Randy Cordray, commented on that:
"I really think that he would've stayed on longer, but if you're not respected and don't
even get offered a contract or a discussion of a future contract, then you move on."
The book features quotes from Carell himself, but it doesn't include the actor’s comments
on his departure from the show. Maybe the story of “The Best Boss Ever” leaving
the show is more complicated and dramatic than it seems… But we have great news as
well! Have you heard of the "Space Force"? It's an upcoming Netflix series, starring
Steve Carell and created by Greg Daniels. Yeah, this very guy who was "The Office" showrunner.
What a promising reunion!
JOHN KRASINSKI
There's no doubt that both John Krasinki and his on-screen character Jim Halpert are professionals
in making people laugh. The 40-year-old actor recently hit the Internet by launching a YouTube
comedy show called "Some Good News." The show highlights positive moments as opposed to
the pandemic-related information that usually raises anxiety.
Were you also smitten by the episode with Brad Pitt? The Oscar winner and Hollywood
heartthrob appeared on the Krasinki's show… As a weatherman! What was it, a prank? Like,
again? Well done, Jim… Oh, sorry. Well done, John!
The only "Some Good News" episode that created more stir was probably the one with Steve
Carell as the entertainment correspondent. The main topic of this episode was the sitcom's
15th anniversary. Krasinski and Carell discussed some funny and memorable moments from the
times they spent together on set. To our surprise, the show's host revealed that he didn't have
high hopes for "The Office" initially.
However, he ended up having only one downside – the understanding of how good the creative
process can actually be. Why was it a downside? Krasinski confessed years later he still considered
the series filming crew to be the best team he had ever worked with. Awww!
RAINN WILSON
Is it even possible?! Well, apparently Jenna Fischer knows her co-star Rain Willson better.
But what was it? Yet another “Office” reunion? Kind of.
We don’t hear much about Wilson acting gigs, right? That’s because he’s mostly focused
on other things. For instance, interviewing Billie Eilish.
Presumably, Rainn’s main interest now is his SoulPancake project that is aimed at sharing
positive and meaningful content. Unlike Krasinski, Wilson started this project long before the
pandemic. Also, at the beginning of April he launched a daily Instagram Live series
titled “Hey There, Human”. The series welcomes celebrities to the table for conversations
seeking to ease viewers’ anxieties about all the unpleasant things we face these days.
Shortly after the actor reconnected with Angela Kinsey (who played his former love interest
in “The Office”), he video chatted with Jenna Fischer. Before the clip ended, Wilson
agreed to part with four rolls of "exquisite" toilet paper in exchange for a loaf of Fischer's
"sh*tty bread." Seems like a very fair trade today…
JENNA FISCHER
But maybe Pam is the younger version of the 46-year old Jenna? Okay, we'd better not confuse
Jenna Fisher with her on-screen character, because some fans go too far with it. Ever
heard of the allegation that Jenna Fischer still wears the engagement ring Jim Halpert
gave to Pam Beesly? The topic came up in April 2020 when an Instagram user commented on a
photo of Fischer with her husband. The user asked whether the actress keeps her character's
ring in real life. Jenna responded:
"What a terrible rumor! Of course not! I wear the ring that my actual husband of 10 years
gave me!"
You might think it's quite a random question to ask the actress, but for some reason, this
rumour was circulating around "The Office" star for years. Fischer previously revealed
on Twitter that she'd never been interested in wearing the ring outside of the show.
"While true that I kept the engagement ring Jim gave to Pam, it was a silver prop ring,
not worth $5,000, and I do not wear it in real life."
Indeed, why would she? Jenna's marriage with director Lee Kirk seems idyllic. Fischer admitted
to having doubts about their relationships with Lee first, because he had just split
from her first husband then. Both were afraid to fall in love and took their time before
committing to each other. Luckily, the two couldn't fight the chemistry between them
and eventually ended up as a strong couple.
ANGELA KINSEY
It has recently surfaced that Angela Kinsley said goodbye to the show after she failed
casting for the role of Pam. She didn’t expect to get a call from the casting director,
informing her about another part of (quote) "a little judgy accountant Angela Martin.
" A LITTLE judgy?! Good joke!
We guess Angela could have been jealous of Jenna Fischer, because she got the role of
Pam. But instead of becoming rivals, the actresses became real-life besties. A couple of months
ago, Kinsey even created the "Office Ladies" podcast together with Fischer. Each week they
break down an episode of the sitcom, sharing behind-the-scenes secrets, as well as their
personal memories of filming it. We hope you've already added this podcast to your "Listen
While Stuck At Home" playlist!
MINDY KALING Another great thing for quarantine binge-watching
is an upcoming "Never Have I Ever" series, created by Mindy Kaling, aka Kelly Kapoor
from "The Office." This highly anticipated rom-com tells the story of an Indian girl
that is going through all kinds of teenage travails at a Californian high school. Not
many know though that this story was initially inspired by "The Office" episode that gave
us a look at Kelly Kapoor's life outside of work. Some of the critics claim that "Never
Have I Ever" is Mindy's best show so far. Intriguing! We look forward to the premiere.
In addition to launching her own series (which is not even the first one), she also manages
to be a great single mom to her 2-year-old daughter. The usually candid Kaling keeps
being very private about the paternity of her daughter Katherine. One of the child's
alleged fathers is Mindy's "Office" co-star BJ Novak.
Their real-life relationship status confuses us just like Ryan and Kelly's "on-again, off-again"
romance. Novak explained… Well, tried to explain once his relationship with Kaling
as follows:
"We were never really dating, we were never really not dating. We didn't know. No one
knew. All you'd know for sure is that you'd always find one of us next to the other, even
if we weren't getting along."
After dating, breaking up, and making up multiple times in real life, Kaling and Novak decided
to remain best friends. However, the rumours about their secret romance were never put
to rest. We witnessed a new wave of gossips after the two appeared at the 2020 Oscars
together, and the most tantalizing question was "Is BJ Novak a father of Mindy Kaling's
child?".
Yes, he is. A godfather, to be precise.
"The truth is that B.J. is so much more like family now than a platonic friend. He's the
godfather to my daughter; he comes over like once a week. Sometimes he'll come over just
to hang out with her."
While you may think Kaling is protecting herself from a scandal, the truth is different. Mindy
actually wants to leave this decision to her daughter. Back in 2019, "The Office" star
said:
"My feeling is that, until I speak to my daughter about that, I'm not going to talk to anyone
else about it."
BJ NOVAK And what about BJ Novak, who portrayed Ryan
Howard on the show? Well, he seems like one of the few cast members who got over "The
Office" a long time ago. Moreover, he kind of got over his whole film career. His primary
focus now is writing. In fact, Novak has been a bestselling children’s author for years.
Recently, “The Office” star went live on his Facebook page to read his “Book With
No Pictures". And he will probably do it again very soon!
It turned out that, besides writing, Novak has other things he wants to try out. Like…
Politics? Oh yes, you'd better be prepared for such a twist! Speaking on Pete Holmes
January podcast called "You Made It Weird", Novak revealed that his love for Los Angeles
is very deep. So deep that he even considered running for the city mayor someday! The 40-year-old
also said, though, that he wouldn't do it unless he knew exactly how to “improve things”.
The actor’s dream is to resolve the city's (quote) "pride issue," and his plan as a mayor
would be to "invest in the city's identity." Okay, Mr. Novak, we trust you.
Oh, that's a lot of surprising stories… Did we inspire you to rewatch “The Office”
for, like, a 100 time? If you decide to do so, be sure: you are not alone in this obsession.
Most likely, the show’s cast do it on a regular basis, as well!