The Office: Dunder Mifflin Is In 'The Last Of Us' And 14 More Facts

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The Office: Dunder Mifflin Is In 'The Last Of Us' And 14 More Facts

NBCUniversal Television

Thanks to the podcast industrial complex giving us endless retrospectives and desperate home cooks wondering exactly how long to toast the ancho chiles for the perfect beef-and-bean soup, we might never run out of new The Office facts to post for posterity. Here are 15 about the show that make us never want to go to its namesake: 

…And So Did The Last Of Us

The Last Of Us Dunder Mifflin

Naughty Dog

An office is for not dying, and sure, we'd certainly spend eternity embarrassed that we kicked the bucket wearing a refied bean-crusted Taco Bell work shirt. Barricade the doors and shoot stragglers from Vance Refrigeration in the PS5 remake of The Last Of Us. 

The Actors Did Stuff To Make Themselves Look More ‘Normal'

To be a person in Hollywood is to become a veneer-capped, spray-tan-sheened cartoon of a human who has to look unrealistically idealized for the camera. The Office, however, wanted a more “authentic” look for its cast, as Jenna Fischer details in this 2008 interview. 

The Actors Had Myspace Blogs

Myspace T-shirt

Wikimedia Commons: egg (Hong, Yun Seon)

Because nothing screams “I have to look present even though this entire meeting could've been an email” like dicking around on your computer during scenes where you don't have any lines. We're just glad Creed had an actual place to get his CreedThoughts out before QAnon conspiracies took over. 

The Office Continues To Be Popular, Even As Work From Home Becomes The Norm

Michael Scott grilled foot

NBCUniversal Television

The show made a lot of people wary of white collar jobs, and now it seems the days of drab open floor spaces are going the way of the dodo. Yet The Office continues to find new viewers, presumably from young people who want to understand why their parents are so downtrodden all the time. 

HR Pros Use The Series For Training

Michael Scott on Diversity Day

NBCUniversal Television

What better way to lower the stakes of cringe moments than using a TV show as an example? And The Office sure does provide examples of cringe in the workplace. 

The Show Self-Consciously Leaned In To Internet Fame

They're the same picture

NBCUniversal Television

Watching the first couple of seasons, you have to applaud the series' commitment to the mockumentary bit. Camerawork is erratic, actors look like your layabout cousin finally followed up on some leads from the temp agency, and the “I'd rather chew rusty nails than go to Chili's with my boss” energy is palpable. But realism can only carry a show so far, especially when that documentary crew has been hanging around way longer than needed to get footage. What can you do when you can't be The Bicycle Thieves? Lean into memes. 

Maybe The Michael Scott Paper Company Wasn't Such A Bad Idea

The Michael Scott Paper Company

NBCUniversal Television

It was a stupid idea: Michael, Ryan, and Pam breaking off from their established company to start their own dead-tree-slinging operation. But maybe if Michael had waiting a couple years and really gone nuts with memes and TikToks, he could've gotten in on some of the eight-figure deals being thrown around for his jokes. 

The Importance Of A Good Casting Director

Keep your eyeballs on the TV before the “play next episode” countdown on your streaming service is up and you'll see the name Allison Jones. There's a reason she gets such high billing, being one of the best eyes for talent in Hollywood. 

Pam's Painting Of The Office Park Might Become a Relic

Try Googling the show, and you might get a bunch of articles about the commercial real estate crisis that is a byproduct of people trying to stay alive during COVID-19 lockdowns. As more and more people realize that a day on the job is far more pleasant without an hours-long Office Space-style commute. “We're not a workplace, we're a family” was always corporate BS anyway.

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