‘The Office:’ Why John Kraskinski Calls Jim and Pam ‘The Most Special Relationship I Will Have On Screen’
Fans of The Office are thrilled to hear the latest rumors swirling about a possible reunion. One of the most popular sitcoms in television history, The Office launched the careers of several cast members including Steve Carell, John Krasinski, and Jenna Fischer.
Playing the idyllic couple Jim and Pam from flirtation to courtship to marriage, Krasinski and Fischer turned their on-screen relationship into one of television’s most popular couplings. Both have raved about each other through the years with Krasinski giving their air time together extremely high praise.
Auditioning for Jim and Pam
Apparently, Krasinski and Fischer felt their chemistry from the get-go. The Office actress described her audition when she was matched with Krasinski.
“Over the course of that two days, I was mixed and matched with John several times,” Fischer said, according to NPR. “And after the second day, we were walking out of a scene and he turned to me and he said, you’re my favorite Pam. I hope you get this job. And I smiled really big and I said, I’m so glad you said that because you’re my favorite Jim… I don’t think anyone could do it except for you.”
Krasinski shared a similar vibe when he was asked to read with Fischer just when he thought he wasn’t in the running.
“I figured if I didn’t get to read with her, then I wasn’t going to be Jim. And at the last moment they said, no, no… you have to read with this girl, Jenna,” Krasinski recalled in 2016. “And I just felt like that was it. I actually thought that moment there, if I ever had a shot, it was going to be now because I was reading with her.”
‘The Office’ runs close to cancellation
The 13 Hours star revealed that the NBC sitcom was dangerously close to getting the ax in its early days due to low ratings.
“We were going to be canceled the first two seasons, definitely,” Krasinski said. “Every week, I remember this guy Jeff Ingold, who worked at NBC. He came every week to say, listen, it’s… I love this show. It’s just not working. We’re going to cancel it.”
Yet due to a growing fan base utilizing an online platform, The Office began to catch on with viewers actually paying to watch the show.
“It was at the time of iTunes. And I remember our fans were actually buying the show when they could watch it for free,” Krasinski explained. “So because they were buying the show and not watching it on NBC, it showed people that there was a whole new audience that was loving the show so much that they’d actually spend money.”
Jim and Pam gain popularity
In his interview with NPR, Krasinski shared how their burgeoning fan base became truly invested in the evolving Jim-and-Pam romance.
“We were so involved with our fans from the very beginning. They were genuinely moved by this relationship,” the Leatherheads actor noted. “There was something that everybody was connecting to… and then followed us along as if we were part of their family.”
The Office alum considered the loyalty of the fans an honor and wanted to portray the Dunder Mifflin couple with great care.
“I think it was a big big responsibility to be a member of that couple. And I loved every single moment of it,” Krasinski shared, acknowledging the significant role The Office lovebirds played in his career. “It will always be one of the most, if not the most, special relationship I will have on screen.”
Thanks to streaming services, fans continue to get their regular fix of The Office and can follow the Jim-and-Pam storyline all over again.
