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Showrunners initially worried that celebrity guest stars would spoil the show’s documentary aspect.
Known for launching the careers of many of its performers, the office didn’t have any big-name guest stars for a while as it wanted to remain a show that felt more like real life, and the show’s creator felt that it that would lose if they added celebrities to the series. That all changed in later seasons, however, when celebrities like Will Ferrell and Kathy Bates appeared in a number of episodes.
The network also pushed the show to add some well-known guest stars in the season five episode, which aired after the Super Bowl, for obvious reasons. So the showrunners had to come up with a clever way to include some celebrities without actually appearing in The Office, which they feared would spoil the documentary/reality aspect of the show.
THE VIDEO OF THE DAY
8/8 Jack Black cameo in The Office.
Jack Black made a cameo appearance on The Office’s “Stress Relief” episode that aired after the Super Bowl. He appeared in a fictional film called Mrs. Albert Hannaday. It was a fake film about a man who begins a passionate affair with his fiancee’s grandmother. They created this whole fake film for The Office because at the time Greg Daniels didn’t want any celebrities in the actual office as he felt it would spoil the documentary aspect of the show. That way, celebrities like Jack Black could appear in the series without actually stepping into the world of The Office. Pretty awesome, right?
7/8 Jessica Alba guest-starred on The Office
Jessica Alba guest starred alongside Jack Black in the Super Bowl episode of The Office. Andy, the character of Ed Helms, illegally downloads a movie that hasn’t been released yet and watches it with Jim and Pam, who don’t know how to illegally download movies. Alba played Jack Black’s fiancee in the film until he fell in love with her grandmother.
6/8 Guest appearance by Idris Elba in The Office.
Idris Elba appeared in season five of The Office when Dunder Mifflin was struggling to stay afloat during the financial crisis. He played the character of Charles Miner who became Michael Scott’s nemesis on the show. Michael hated him so much that he eventually quit his management job at Dunder Mifflin to start his own paper company.
5/8 Kathy Bates guest-starred on The Office.
Kathy Bates had a recurring role in season six playing Jo Bennett, the CEO of Saber, the printer sales company that bought out Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch. Her character hails from Tallahassee, Florida, where she resided when not in Scranton.
4/8 Will Ferrell guest-starred on The Office.
Will Ferrell appeared in a handful of episodes of The Office when Steve Carell left the series. The powers that be who thought it would be helpful to have a major comedy actor on the show to help with the fact that the show’s main character is leaving. His character became quite annoying and misogynistic and quickly left the show after Michael left after his character suffered brain damage from a basketball incident.
3/8 Nicholas D’Agosto guest-starred on The Office.
Nicholas D’Agosto, who went on to have roles on Showtime’s Masters of Sex and NBC’s Trial & Error and FOX’s Gotham, played the bit role of Hunter on The Office. Hunter was Jan’s assistant who appeared in some episodes when they showed him at the company. Michael was a bit jealous of him as he was very good looking. Jan ended up performing one of Hunter’s songs at the dinner party she and Michael were throwing at his apartment, although D’Agosto wasn’t the one who actually sang on the track.
2/8 Chloris Leachman guest-starred on The Office.
Chloris Leachman also had a guest appearance in The Office’s Super Bowl episode. She appeared in the fictional film that Ed Helms’ character Andy illegally downloads and watches with Jim and Pam. She played the much older love interest of Jack Black’s fictional character. Leachman passed away in January 2021, but she lives on as one of The Office’s famous guest stars.
1/8 Kevin McHale guest-starred on The Office.
Many Glee fans may know that Kevin McHale, who played Artie on that show, also played the pizza delivery boy in a Season 4 episode of The Office. In the end, Michael and Dwight hold the child hostage and demand that he give them the discount on the pizzas Michael ordered. He declines because the discount didn’t apply to the order Michael placed. Eventually they let him go and McHale’s pizza boy character dumps them as he leaves.
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