John Krasinski took a break from hosting your mom’s favorite quarantine web series to appear on Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey’s podcast Office Ladies, and some of the revelations will set your Jim and Pam–shipping heart aflame. The two reflect on the first time they auditioned together, with Fischer describing it as, “What if you walked into a room and music started playing and you and another person just started dancing in unison even though you’d never met? That’s what it was like auditioning with you.†Krasinski adds, “I felt like I could see the future.†When Fischer got the call that she was cast as Pam, she asked, “Did John Krasinski get the role of Jim?†And when Krasinski got his casting call, he “actually jumped on a couch†and the very first thing he asked was, “Did Jenna Fischer get the part of Pam?†because “I thought if you were on it I was gonna be on one of the best things I was ever gonna do in my life.†They sound like such star-crossed soulmates, the way they talk about this, that I genuinely hope Emily Blunt doesn’t listen to this episode.
Then, they talk in great detail about filming their first kiss, for the season two finale “Casino Night,†and how they were both a bundle of nerves. Krasinski says it was his “first acting kiss ever,†and Fischer says she was “one kiss more experienced than John,†(while Angela adds that her first on-screen kiss was with Dwight). The day that they filmed, production kept Fischer and Krasinski apart from each other all day, and instructed them not to speak to each other or text, so that when they saw each other on set it would be the first time. Fischer says that director Ken Kwapis told her that “the day we did the kissing scene, you and John were off the charts nervous,†and it didn’t help that the scene description on the shooting schedule just said “JIM KISSES PAM!!!†in all-caps, italics, with three exclamation points. Angela deserves a Webby for this episode, for Best Third Wheel.
Fischer also remembers that Krasinski “wasn’t really pranky,†but that one time, filming a driving scene on a hot day, he turned her seat heater on without her knowing. He counters, “I’m such a bad prankster that I stole that prank from Clooney when we were doing Leatherheads. He did that to me. That’s how unoriginal I am.†(And here we thought the 2008 Roaring ’20s football comedy Leatherheads was just one big George Clooney prank.) Krasinski does add that after filming wrapped on the series and he was clearing out his trailer, “I ran back and stole the Dunder Mifflin sign that we all did talking heads to,†calling it “the worst heist of all time.â€