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Photo/Video: John Krasinski, Jack Ryan, Amazon Studios/Todd Williamson/Hollywood Insider YouTube Channel
John Krasinski is a powerhouse talent and one of the multi-faceted ones in the entertainment world. He began his bombshell career on a modern classic of a sitcom, The Office, and currently stars as an action hero fighting terrorists for the USA in Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. Needless to say, his resume is as diverse as it gets – he is also talk show host of Some Good News. He is one of the biggest names in Hollywood right now and it’s not hard to see why. Krasinski is an unstoppable force in the world of TV and film as he is the director of A Quiet Place and sequel A Quiet Place 2.
#1- John Krasinski’s first-ever role
In sixth grade, Krasinski played a role almost as iconic as Jim Halpert and Jack Ryan. He was Daddy Warbucks in his middle school musical, Annie. This guy just plays icon after icon!
#2- A friend from The Office went to school with John Krasinski
Krasinski attended Newton South High School. And so did future Dunder Mifflin temp turned boss turned bowling alley employee, BJ Novak. Novak was a writer on The Office, but that wasn’t the only piece of his that Krasinski starred in. In high school, Novak wrote and directed a satirical play and you’ll never guess who was cast. The two graduated in 1997 and wouldn’t be united again until Krasinski was cast on The Office eight years later.
#3- He was a nice kid
Before leaving home for college hoping to eventually become an English teacher (a dream which unfortunately did not work out), Krasinski did something most college-bound kids would find too exciting for frat parties, booze-filled nights, and “studying” to do: he taught English as a second language to kids in Costa Rica.
#4- It was a rough road to the top
Before Krasinski got his big break, he had a rough time. He had mostly roles akin to “waiter #2” and uncredited roles. As the person most often cast as tree #2 in high school productions, I can relate. He was weeks away from quitting acting. He even called his family and told them he was ready to quit and come back home when he got a call from his agent that this little show called The Office was auditioning actors. Needless to say, all of us are glad he stuck around.
#5- Enough heavy stuff about acting, how is John Krasinski’s dog?
Krasinski has a red fox lab named Finn. Finn was adopted by Krasinski years ago. Finn seems more popular among the paparazzi than Krasinski as they just can’t get enough pictures of him. They even took a photo of him in a dog carrier at the airport, a rather mundane photo for any dog that does not belong to Jack Ryan.
Related article: Why did John Krasinski’s ‘Some Good News’ Succeed?
#6- He had the coolest internship in college
While attending Brown University, Krasinski got a mini big break when he was hired as a script intern for Conan O’Brien. It must’ve been a weird experience to have someone as an intern and then years later have them as a celebrity interviewee on your show.
#7- John Krasinski was originally called in to audition for the role of Dwight
I think I don’t need to be the one to tell fans that The Office is perfectly cast the way it is. But the vision for the cast was originally a little different. John Krasinski was called in to audition for Dwight but he read the script and knew he was meant to be Jim. He made a risky move: the no-name actor asked the casting director if he could audition to play Jim. And the rest is history.
#8- He was hoping Jenna Fischer would be cast as Pam
According to Jenna Fischer’s book, The Actor’s Life, at the test read for The Office, there were four potential actors for every major character on The Office: Jim, Pam, Dwight, and Michael. Krasinski knew as soon as he read with Fischer that she was meant to play Pam. As soon as his agent told him he was cast as Jim, the first question he asked was if Jenna Fischer was cast as Pam.
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#9- He was a huge fan of the UK version of The Office
Krasinski at first wasn’t sure if a US adaptation of The Office would work. The original show was created by Ricky Gervais and starred a list of British all-stars like Martin Freeman and Mackenzie Crook. Krasinski was such a huge fan of the British version of the show, he wasn’t sure if an adaptation could be pulled off. He was dead wrong of course as the US version appears on almost everyone’s list of the best American sitcoms of all time.
#10- Steve Carrell, however, was not a fan
The actor who gave life to the greatest character on The Office and undoubtedly one of the best in sitcom history did not do his homework before coming on set. He refused to watch episodes of the UK Office before coming on set because he didn’t want his portrayal of Michael Scott to be influenced too much by Gervais’ portrayal of David Brent, the Michael equivalent in the UK version.
Full Commentary on ‘A Quiet Place 2’
Video: Hollywood Insider YouTube Channel
#11- He and Carrell were the kings of ruining takes
The term “breaking” in the world of sitcom production refers to when actors break character and start laughing at something in the script or that happened on set. Krasinski and Carrell were reportedly the most difficult actors to share scenes with because they were so damn funny. Life must have been hard for Jenna Fischer as Pam naturally shared the most scenes with Krasinski.
Related article: Can We Call ‘The Office’ A Classic Yet?
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#12- Money well spent on pranks by John Krasinski
Some Office nerd and math nerds calculated how much money Jim has spent throughout the series on pranking Dwight. It’s somewhere in between $7,000 and $10,000. Given how annoying Dwight could be at times, it was a smart investment.
#13- The Office was supposed to be titled The American Workplace originally
The reason the studio came up with this title was to differentiate from the British show. This idea was scrapped by NBC for unknown reasons. But the original title did make a cameo appearance in season nine. It becomes the title of the documentary the characters have been starring in throughout the show.
#14- The opening credits were shot by Krasinski
The title sequence of The Office is almost as iconic as the show. The images of Scranton, PA playing over the upbeat theme song are the only shots from the entire show actually shot in the town of Scranton (the soundstage for the show was in California). John Krasinski was so excited when he got the news he was playing Jim, he drove to Scranton with his friends and shot the footage that would later play during The Office theme song for nine seasons.
#15- Krasinski owes an apology letter to the city of Scranton
Since the airdate of the pilot of The Office, the real sign welcoming people to Scranton that appears in the theme song was stolen multiple times. It got so bad the city had to remove the sign. Clearly, when a city is the setting of a popular TV show, it can’t have nice things. And it’s all thanks to Krasinski’s footage. Whoops!
#16- The prop computers on set weren’t prop computers
From the beginning of filming, the five main cast members of The Office, Jenna Fischer, John Krasinski, Rainn Wilson, Steve Carell, and BJ Novak, had computers on their characters’ desks in the office that were connected to Wi-fi. The entire cast got Wi-fi on their computers. So when you see characters fooling around on their office computer in the background, they’re surfing the web.
#17- John Krasinski was the hottest guy in The Office
Just ask Andy Bernard, who after Jim starts dating Pam, remarks that he’s now the hottest single guy in the office. This list ranks both men and women but Krasinski comes in first among the guys. Plus, it’s just an indisputable fact, Jim is the office hottie!
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#18- Someone has to do it
Krasinski wore many hats on the set of A Quiet Place. In addition to directing and starring in the movie, Krasinski also wore the motion capture suit to get the movements for the creature on camera.
#19- Impressive for a first-timer
A Quiet Place was Millicent Simmonds’, the actress who played the eldest child, second movie. Simmonds has been deaf since she was a baby because of an accidental medicine overdose. A Quiet Place certainly seems like a good first movie to have on your resume.
#20- Emily Blunt is quite the actress
Remember the bathtub scene in which the mom in A Quiet Place gives birth? That was filmed in one take. Not only that, but according to Krasinski, Blunt broke character as soon as he yelled cut and asked, “What’s everyone having for lunch?” Golf claps, Emily Blunt, golf claps.
Related article: Celebrating 30 Years of ‘The Simpsons’- Analyzing Its Success & Best Episodes
Behind the scenes footage of A Quiet Place | @Hollywdinsdr | Source: A Quiet Place |
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•⠀#aquietplace #johnkrasinski #emilyblunt #millicentsimmonds #noahjupe #hollywood #hollywoodinsider pic.twitter.com/p40sjBAwkt— Hollywood Insider (@Hollywdinsdr) March 14, 2019
Rendezvous at the Premiere of ‘A Quiet Place 2’
Video: Hollywood Insider YouTube Channel
#21- Monsters and Puppets
A Quiet Place marks the second time Krasinski and Blunt have appeared together on screen. The first time was in the company of a frog, a bear, and a weird alien dude. No, it wasn’t in some Judd Apatow movie about teenagers getting high, it was in the 2011 Muppets movie.
#22- The rules in A Quiet Place
Rule #1 is don’t make a sound, #2 is never stray from the path, and #3 is if the lights that decorate the house are red, run.
#23- The plot holes in A Quiet Place
Even the greatest movies have some plot holes. In A Quiet Place, how does the family cook without making a sound? We’ll assume they don’t use fire but even so, you need to cut vegetables to make a meal that’s shareable between a family. We see cut vegetables on the family’s plates when they have dinner. Doesn’t a knife naturally make a thud on a cutting board? Also, carnivores, hate to break it to you but you can’t kill an animal quietly. Looks like everyone in the universe of A Quiet Place had to go vegetarian.
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#24- The spelling error that only eagle-eyed fans notice
The name Tokyo on the list of cities Krasinski’s character has tried to contact in A Quiet Place is misspelled. Good thing it’s crossed out on the list, but it’s still visible.
#25- The king of horror gave a shout-out to Krasinski
Stephen King is the master of the horror genre. No one even comes close. Krasinski said the greatest honor he received as a director was when the king himself tweeted, “A QUIET PLACE is an extraordinary piece of work. Terrific acting, but the main thing is the SILENCE, and how it makes the camera’s eye open wide in a way few movies manage.”
#26- John Krasinski filmed A Quiet Place in 36 days
Quite a feat for any director but especially a director who doubles as the lead character. Hopefully, A Quiet Place Part II was easier for him, unless his character reappears as a ghost.
#27- He’s jealous of the God of Thunder
Krasinski has said in interviews he is jealous of Chris Hemsworth’s body. Join the club, dude! Not everyone can be an Avenger.
#28- There is impressive setting accuracy in Jack Ryan
Well, scenes that take place in Venezuela are actually filmed in Colombia. But, the production of Jack Ryan is the first ever to be granted access to certain parts of the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.
#29- Jack Ryan is not faithful to the source material
Krasinski’s Jack Ryan is the only adaptation of Jack Ryan to not have a plot that came from the Tom Clancy novels. They instead are written with plots to fit our current geopolitical climate.
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#30- Michael Bay hired a military technical advisor
This was to make sure that all of the stunts were realistic on the set of Jack Ryan. The military-technical advisor had previously worked on 2014’s The Last Ship and the Transformers franchise.
#31- He was the world’s greatest racing horse
Well, to be more accurate, he played the world’s greatest racing horse. He voiced Secretariat on Bojack Horseman.
#32- John Krasinski is interested in playing Reed Richards in the next Fantastic Four franchise
Reed Richards is a mutant who later becomes Mr. Fantastic. He was a prodigious child in the S.T.E.M. fields before he is hit by cosmic rays, mutates, and forms the Fantastic Four.
We, at Hollywood Insider, will continue to applaud, admire and adore the lovable funny guy John Krasinski. John, we look forward to your future roles and projects as we know the best is yet to come.
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Carrie Fishbane is obsessed with all things comedy and loves to reflect on the impact of comedy on the world. Having spent thousands of hours studying literature, she also writes about the political impact of entertainment and the power movies and TV have to create social change. Hollywood Insider promotes ethics and substance in entertainment, which is exactly in line with Carrie’s perspective. Carrie’s favorite movies include Jojo Rabbit, Deadpool, and Inception and her favorite shows are Rick and Morty, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, and The Office.
