‘The Office’: Why 1 Character Still Gives Fans the Creeps
All these years later, The Office fans still have reservations about a few of the show’s characters. One of which, some say, is as creepy as ever, “ruining” syndicated re-runs of the sitcom. Who is it and why is the hatred so strong?
A lot of celebrities appeared in ‘The Office’
As one of the most iconic shows to ever come to TV, The Office‘s success hinged on casting, script development, and improvised banter between stars. To this day, the show remains a top contender in “most-watched” lists.
Aside from the main cast, The Office‘s guest stars contributed to the show’s humor. Some who’ve appeared — creating memorable characters all their own — include Idris Elba, Will Ferrell, Amy Adams, James, Spader, and many more.
One star, in particular, left such an impression, fans still refer to him as one of the “creepiest” to ever grace The Office set.
This character still bothers some fans of ‘The Office’
If you search the web for “most-hated characters from The Office,” you’ll likely run into a few solid names. While James Spader’s portrayal of Robert California received mixed reviews, others — like Zach Woods’ character, Gabe Lewis — is flat-out disliked.
According to the multiple Reddit threads, Gabe is considered the show’s “sociopath.” One Reddit user pointed out that the character has “fake charisma” to “hide his true nature.”
The user also pointed out that Gabe “thinks he’s better than everyone else,” is power-hungry “to a dangerous level,” is “obsessed with horror films and the occult,” he has “no empathy at all,” and his relationship with Erin is toxic.
Others argued he might be a narcissist while some think he’s too timid to be a sociopath. These are only opinions, but the conversations about Gabe’s unlikability go far beyond Reddit.
“Gabe is the worst character on The Office. Don’t @ me,” one person tweeted.
“Why do we all give Nellie a hard time when Gabe is obviously the worst character from The Office?” another asked.
“How many years has the office been off-air, and how many times have I rewatched the series for me to decide once and for all that Gabe will always be my least favorite in The Office and nothing will change that?” this viewer added.
Clearly, many have a lot of feelings about Gabe Lewis which is likely why some won’t touch any of Woods’ other projects.
Woods often plays similar roles
Woods may not have every fan of The Office‘s vote. His other roles might be considered extensions of the same character. Though there are differences between The Office‘s Gabe, Veep‘s Ed Webster, and Silicon Valley‘s Jared Dunn, pieces of Woods is in every role.
“My first movie role was In the Loop and I played this terrified, back-biting snarker,” Woods told Chicago Tribune. “And then I was on The Office, and that was also a very ego-driven character. And I loved playing those guys, as alienating as they were.”
He continued: “The art that I love — comedy or otherwise — is art that has an affirmative view of the world. That’s not to say that it’s airbrushing out the horrible things, but that it has some humanism under it.”
The actor said most roles he’s drawn to are “quite sad, or depressing even because they’re depicting difficult or disappointing occurrences.” He added those qualities are important because “they feel very pro-human being ultimately.”
There you have it. Woods has a reason for putting a little extra creepiness into his roles. Love him or hate him — Gabe is the perfect example of The Office‘s ability to pivot. With a polarizing character, it makes fans appreciate the main cast that much more.
