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John Krasinski Reveals One Jim And Pam Plotline He Refused To Film

John Krasinski Reveals One Jim And Pam Plotline He Refused To Film

The Office star says he just didn't think the characters could come back from it.

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers

John Krasinski has revealed that there was one Office plotline he refused to shoot.

The actor played Jim Halpert for eight years on the hit spin-off of the iconic Ricky Gervais comedy, with his relationship with Pam Beesley (Jenna Fischer) a major part of his character's story.

However, the actor has now claimed that there was one Jim and Pam storyline that he felt went too far and so told producers that he wouldn't do it.

According to Brian Baumgartner's new book, Welcome to Dunder Mifflin: The Ultimate Oral History of The Office, the episode 'After Hours', from the eighth season, saw Jim cheat on Pam with her maternity leave replacement Cathy Simms (Lindsey Broad).

NBC

Krasinski went straight to series creator Greg Daniels to discuss his uncertainty around the episode.

Looking back, he said: "That's the only time I remember putting my foot down. I remember saying things that I never thought I'd say before, like, 'I'm not going to shoot it'.

"My feeling is there is a threshold with which you can push our audience. They are so dedicated. We have shown such great respect to them.

"But there's a moment where if you push them too far, they'll never come back. And I think that if you show Jim cheating, they'll never come back."

While the idea might have taken Krasinski back a bit, Daniels later explained his reasoning behind it.

NBC

Discussing the thought process, the writer said he felt their story was drifting a little and needed something adding to the mix.

He said: "[The fans] were very comfortable with the show they were getting, and I needed to worry them that maybe I was going to give them a bad ending so they were happy when they got a good ending."

According to Krasinski, however, he might never even have got the part of Jim if it wasn't for his mother.

Speaking to Stephen Colbert about how he got into show business, the 42-year-old said he was close to giving up on his dream of becoming an actor, and it was only thanks to his mother that it worked out.

Alamy

Recalling a conversation with his mum in the car after leaving theatre school, Krasinski said: "I said, 'I'm moving to New York and I'm going to be an actor'.

"My mom paused for probably half a second and she said, 'Great, go and do it. The only thing I ask is that if you don't have a nibble or a bite in two-and-a-half or three years, you have to make me one promise, you have to pull yourself out, because as your mother, you can't ask me to tell you to give up on your dream.

"I said, 'That's so profound, and, yes, fair'. Cut to two-and-a-half years, I was, like, 'So I'm out, this is terrible, it's so scary. This is the worst, waiting tables, not as fun as they say'.

"And she said, 'You know, it's September, just wait it out until the end of the year. Don't give up just yet'.

"I was telling her to come and get me, and three weeks later, I got The Office."

Featured Image Credit: NBC

Topics: Entertainment, Funny, US Entertainment, The Office, Ricky Gervais