‘The Office:’ John Krasinski Has 1 Person To Thank For His Entire Career
John Krasinski is best known for his role as Jim Halpert in The Office. The show ran from 2005-2013 and has become known as one of the most-loved sitcoms of the 2000s. Krasinski was ready to give up acting, though, before he landed the role — and he has one person to thank for not letting him give up on his dream.
John Krasinski was planning to become an English teacher
For most of Krasinski’s life, he’d planned to become a teacher, but it was “sheer laziness” that actually caused him to change course. Krasinski explained in an interview with Stephen Colbert that he’d attended Brown University with the intention of becoming an English teacher, but he was initially waitlisted and started one semester later than everyone else.
“After my friends graduated in May, I thought … ‘Let’s just find a place that transfers credits back,’” Krasinski said. He found a theater school and decided to enroll, and that’s when it “completely changed” his life.
Krasinski opted to change plans and move to New York in order to pursue a career in acting. He said his mother was supportive from the get-go, and when Krasinski was about to give up on himself, his mother didn’t let him.
John Krasinski’s mother convinced him not to give up on his dream
Krasinski explained that, once he told his mom about his plans to become an actor, she asked him to make her a promise. “‘[My mom said] The only thing I ask you is, in two and a half or three years, if you don’t have any sense that this is gonna happen … You’ve gotta pull yourself out,’” Krasinski said.
Krasinski agreed, and as the time passed, he realized that acting wasn’t for him, describing the New York life as “horrible” in terms of waiting tables at night and heading to auditions by day. But his mother convinced him to stay just a few more months.
“’It’s September … Wait until the end of the year; don’t give up just yet,’” Krasinski said of his mother’s reaction to his decision to quit. “ … And three weeks later, I got The Office.” These days, Krasinski certainly has his mother to thank for pushing him to stay in New York a bit longer.
John Krasinski has landed roles in other productions such as ‘A Quiet Place’ and ‘The Wind Rises’
Krasinski became a notable actor upon landing his role as Jim Halpert in the NBC sitcom The Office in 2005. He was an instant fan favorite, and throughout the entire series, people couldn’t help but grow to love his character’s relationship with Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer). The show ran from 2005-2013.
Krasinski went on to earn more roles, transitioning from the small screen to the big screen. He worked with his wife, Emily Blunt, in the anime film “The Wind Rises (2013), and earned a leading role in “The Quiet Place” alongside Blunt as well in 2018.
