Rainn Wilson said that the office became 'chaotic' after Steve Carell left, says 'So that was also a struggle'
The Office nearly had a serious problem.
On the June 19 episode of the Good Guys Podcast with Josh Peck and Ben Soffer,
Rainn Wilson
, who played Dwight Schrute on the renowned comedy series, discussed his time on The Office and how the cast and crew developed the tone over time.
Wilson, 59, believes the series, which debuted in 2005, "fell into gear" midway through season 2. "If you watch season one, it is pretty dreary. It's quite dark. It is darkly illuminated. People don't wear any makeup. He stated the show, which was based on a prior British version, has nothing in common with American television. He even recalls that during the first season, before filming the script, the cast would imitate being in the office and doing their tasks for a half-hour in order to "sink" into the reality of the show's "documentary" format.
In season 2, Wilson stated, "Steve [Carell] does his hair a little better." We're sporting a little finer suits. The lighting on the stage makes it feel a little warmer. It's filmed a little kinder. And it helped a lot."
"The show changed and just became a little bit warmer and a little more human," he told me. A huge aspect, he noted, was exposing that Carell's Michael Scott had "a big heart." Wilson responded: "He's a doofus, and he says he always says the wrong thing, but, you know, he's a lovable guy."
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But because Carell, 62, was such an important part of the program, when he decided to depart during season 7 (his last episode was "Goodbye, Michael,' which aired in April 2011), Wilson said things were difficult.
"When Steve left, then it was a little bit chaotic of trying to figure out the tone of the show and who's the lead and how are we telling these stories without the comic engine of the show, which is Michael Scott, and without one of the greatest comic actors in American history at the centre of our show," Wilson recalled."
"So that was also a struggle."
The podcast hosts wondered if it was a "gut punch" to learn Carell was leaving. "We knew it was coming for a long time," Wilson recalled, noting that Carell was "such a big movie star." Just months following the launch of The Office, the actor starred in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, followed by Little Miss Sunshine, Dan in Real Life, Get Smart, Date Night, and Crazy Stupid Love.
"Of course, he'll leave The Office whenever he can.
So we were prepared, but it was absolutely difficult to find the tone of the show without Steve," Wilson explained. The series eventually ran for two more seasons without Carell, thanks in part to a number of guest performers, before concluding with season 9 in 2013.
In 2023, Wilson admitted on a podcast that he "spent several years really mostly unhappy" on The Office. "I didn't enjoy it. I was thinking, "Why am I not a movie star?" Why amn't I the next Jack Black or Will Ferrell? Why can't I have a movie career? "Why don't I have this development deal?" he recalled.
"When I was on The Office … I was making hundreds of thousands," claimed the actor. "I wanted millions. I was a television celebrity, but I aspired to be a film star. It has never been enough. Humans have been around for hundreds of thousands of years, and 'never enough' has helped us as a species."
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