‘The Office’: John Krasinski Once Said Jim Halpert Intentionally Did ‘Mediocre Work’
Over nine seasons of The Office, Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) went from Dunder Mifflin’s resident slacker to manager to entrepreneur. In those early seasons, it was funny to see the clever ways Jim found to minimize his work, and mess with Dwight (Rainn Wilson) who was super committed. Krasinski said Jim couldn’t keep doing mediocre work forever.
Krasinski was on a Television Critics Association panel for The Office on the set in 2009. Going into season 6, Krasinski reflected on Jim’s work ethic. The Office is now streaming on Peacock.
Jim Halpert told ‘The Office’ cameras what he thought of his job
The Jim “look into camera” became a trademark of The Office. Still, if you pay attention to his interviews with the fictional documentary crew, Jim explained his position on working at Dunder Mifflin.
“I think I have a talking head where I describe that the only way to get ahead is to keep your head down and do mediocre work,” Krasinski said. “So I think that he’s very much admitting to the fact. I think he is really good at his job. I think it’s just not really put on him to be very good at his job.”
Charles Miner challenged Jim Halper to do better
The Office Season 6 came after season 5 introduced the character of Charles Miner (Idris Elba). Miner would not return, but his impact on Jim would linger.
“So when the Idris Elba character came, I think he wanted to prove that he could do it, not that he’s always asked to do it,” Krasinski said.
‘The Office’ writer B.J. Novak agreed with John Krasinski
At the end of the day, Krasinski is only the actor. It’s his job to sell Jim to the audience, but he doesn’t decide what Jim does. Krasinski would move behind the scenes as a director, but on The Office, he did what the writers gave him. B.J. Novak was one of those writers and he supported Krasinski’s take on Jim.
“Jim’s ambition has always been more of an issue than his skill,” Novak said. “I think it seems to most of the writers that he would be great if he tried. And I think one of the themes this year is Jim going for it more and trying and challenging himself, especially with the wedding and the baby on the way. I think that that will be really fun to see.”
Season 6 did include Jim and Pam (Jenna Fischer)’s wedding. Starting a family gave Jim more to work for. In later seasons, he would work too much, and miss important family events due to his commute. Ultimately, Jim would find a balance between excelling and being there for his family.
