It’s hard to imagine a world in which the American version of The Office doesn’t exist. Sure, the original UK version elicited a lot of laughs, but there’s a reason that the U.S. comedy series lasted nearly a decade. Fans are still eager to revisit their favorite employees of Dunder Mifflin again and again, even though the show reached its end over six years ago. The Office started airing on NBC in 2005 as an adaptation of the BBC series. Initially, the show had only been meant to be a midseason replacement. However, the obvious success with its wayward characters soon allowed The Office to become the legend that it is today.
It’s hard to imagine this show any other way and it’s even harder to imagine that a lot of the show’s success is thanks to many happy accidents. From casting decisions to on-set secrets, here are 10 facts behind the making of The Office.
Rainn Wilson Auditioned For Michael Scott
Dwight Schrute is one strange (yet audacious) character. Rainn Wilson molds into the role perfectly, making it seem as if the character was billed for the actor. So it may surprise you then to find out that Wilson had originally auditioned for the role of Michael Scott.
Michael and Dwight share a lot of the same personality traits: socially awkward, overindulgent, and overall cringy. But Wilson holds too much of a scrupulous persona to play the carefree Michael Scott. Apparently, Wilson’s audition as Michael has been described as a “terrible Gervais impersonation" and showrunners found him more perfectly suited for the role of Dwight Schrute (which is based off the British character Gareth Keenan). Suffice to say, the casting directors knew exactly what they were doing.
Dunder Mifflin Computers Actually Work
The props for most TV shows and films are simply that– props. Which is why it’s worth noting that the computers that take up much of the desk space at Dunder Mifflin actually worked on set. When the actors weren’t expected to dish out any lines, the cast of The Office would frequently browse on the Internet and play games, even while the cameras were rolling!
Creed Bratton (Creed) and Kate Flannery (Meredith) both play characters that are often only seen in the background, so most of the time these actors were playing some form of game on their computers.
John Krasinski Filmed The Opening Credits
A telltale sign that indicates that someone is watching The Office is the sound of the high-frequency melody that is a part of the opening credits sequence. Many will immediately remember the documentary-style shots that coincide with this music, which include mundane structures of the small Pennsylvania town.
These opening credit scenes were actually shot by John Krasinski, who plays Jim Halpert. After landing the role, he and his friends drove around the real Scranton in their jeep and Krasinski took it upon himself to film random bits of the town (namely the exterior shot of the Dunder Mifflin building).
A Lot Of The Casting Happened On Accident
Considering the success of the show, it would seem that the cast had been diligently picked out based off of their acting experience. In truth, a lot of the casting happened based on pure accident. For example, Paul Lieberstein, who plays Toby Flenderson, is actually one of the writers of The Office. He took on the role of Toby as a one-time appearance. But when the president of NBC watched the episode, he liked Toby so much that he encouraged the showrunners to put much more of him in the show, thus making him a reoccurring character.
Lieberstein had no acting experience and didn’t particularly want to be on the show, which is why Toby has so few lines. Likewise, the role of Phyllis is played by Phyllis Smith who was just one of the casting directors for The Office. She was offered the role of Phyllis because it was created specifically for her, and it eventually earned her a Screen Actors Guild award.
John Krasinski Was Supposed To Play Dwight
Although John Krasinski did audition for the role of Jim, his callback was for Dwight. Krasinski was adamant about playing Jim, but the creators were steadfast in their decision to have Krasinski played Dwight. It was only after Rainn Wilson’s audition that Krasinski was eventually offered the role of Jim.
Could you imagine The Office with Krasinski as Dwight and Wilson as Michael Scott? At least we get to see Krasinski make a brief appearance as Dwight, though both actors ultimately got the role that best suited them.
Jim and Pam Were Meant To Be
Jenna Fischer, who plays Pam Beesly, immediately auditioned for the role of the soft-spoken receptionist. Again, it seems as if the part was made for her and the casting could not have been more perfect. Apparently, John Krasinski felt the same when he first met her. When he and Fisher first auditioned together as Jim and Pam, Krasinski recalls thinking “As soon as Jenna walked in, she was exactly what I imagined the part to be.” He even told Fisher that she was going to get the role!
Fischer felt the exact same way about Krasinski for the role of Jim. The chemistry between the two was instant. And what’s even funnier, is that after Krasinski got the role of Jim, he asked if Fischer got the role of Pam. Likewise, Fischer asked if Krasinski got the role of Jim after learning she had been cast as Pam. The two were definitely meant to be.
Season 1 Is Shot In A Real Office
Despite The Office being shot in a mockumentary-style, much of the show is filmed on a set in Los Angeles. However, the first season was actually shot in a real office. The office is located in California, just above Chandler Valley Center Studios.
There was a soundstage directly below it, which was used to film the Dunder Mifflin warehouse scenes. Eventually, the Dunder Mifflin office was replicated in an actual soundstage, which just happened to be right next door to the warehouse soundstage so that the “real office” was never too far away.
It Wasn’t Always Called ‘The Office"
Because The Office is derived from the UK show of the same name, American executives thought it would be better to give the U.S. version a different name. They wanted it to stand out from its source material, so they originally had the television series titled as “The American Workplace."
Thankfully, NBC decided against it and stuck with The Office. Although, when the faux-documentary finally aired in the final season, the name of the documentary was called The Office: An American Workplace.
The Cast Wrote The Scripts
If you pay enough attention to the credits in the cold opens, you’ll have noticed a lot of familiar names pop up on the screen. What’s fascinating about The Office is the fact that the cast was given many opportunities to write scripts for the show. As mentioned, Paul Liberstein (who plays Toby) had originally been hired as a writer for the show so that’s where most of his contribution lies.
BJ Novak who plays Ryan wrote and directed a decent number of the shows, as in Mindy Kaling who plays Kelly. In fact, Kaling is credited for writing a majority of The Office scripts. Steve Carell also wrote two episodes including “Casino Night." Even minor roles such as Mose Schrute are played by season writers; in this case, Michael Schur who wrote many episodes for The Office.
Bob Odenkirk Is The Original Michael Scott
Another person who was pegged for the role of Michael Scott was Bob Odenkirk. In fact, he was cast for the role when it was initially pitched to NBC. At the time, Steve Carell had other commitments so the role of Michael went to Odenkirk. Obviously, Carell’s schedule freed up and he was cast as the manager of Dunder Mifflin.
Odenkirk took it in stride and was even given a small part in later episodes. He makes an appearance on the show as a manager of a real estate brokerage where it’s obvious that his character is exactly like Michael Scott. And of course, we all know him now as Saul Goodman from Breaking Bad and his subsequent spinoff series Better Call Saul.
