Angela Kinsey and Ed Helms conference call

Angela: And sometimes you’re with someone and you’ll be like what am I doing? But I think Andy and Angela have a lot of that. They sort of bring each other’s sort of crazy…

Ed: Yeah. But I do think that there is an undercurrent like anyone — with the exception of Andy’s parents, anyone who knows our couple is probably like what the hell is going on here?

Angela: Right.

Ed: And I’ve certainly had that experience at a wedding before, just being like — like the entire wedding party at the reception being like oh god.

Ed: Let’s enjoy the food.

Press: Do you guys have specific moments where you — where one of your cast mates — where you just couldn’t handle it anymore and you had to shoot it several times because you couldn’t stop laughing?

Ed: There are so many.

Angela: My gosh, every day. I’m not kidding.

Ed: There’s so many. But Angela, we…

Angela: We just had one.

Ed: What was the one that we had recently?

Angela: It was so bad. It was so — we — I mean they had to stop rolling. It was actually me, Ed and Rainn. And they literally gave us like a five minute break to try and collect ourselves.

And what was hilarious was like first, I think like — I think I went first and then Rainn got tickled. And then Rainn and I finally get it together and then Ed lost it. It was so funny.

Ed: What was the thing? Oh, I remember one that was — it was from the — I think it was the season premiere this year when I come up to your desk and I go hey Ang, and you give — shoot me this dirty look and I go hola.

Angela: Yeah.

Ed: A la, a la…

Angela: Under my angerella…

Ed: Under my angerella…

Angela: Yeah.

Ed: And Oscar was sitting next to, you know, Oscar’s desk is right there. So he — and Oscar never breaks — ever, he never breaks.

Angela: I know.

Ed: It’s sort of like this running bet, like he’ll give anyone $100 if he breaks. And I was doing the Angela thing and I made eye contact with Oscar. And he didn’t break, but he had this twinkle in his eye…

Angela: Yes.

Ed: And it was like I’m about to break him. And it made me lose it.

Angela: Yeah.

Ed: And it’s so frustrating because sometimes it’s like your favorite take. It’s, you know, it’s like the take that’s going the best that’s always the funniest and it makes you lose it.

Angela: Right.

Press: My question is basically now that the show has been around for a couple of years and it’s in its fifth season, how do you go about approaching your characters in a way that keeps things fresh, not just for the audience or the show, but for yourselves? How do you go about that?

Angela: Oh wow. You know, I really think — we sort of highlighted on this a minute ago, that I really think that our writers, for me personally, keep surprising me.

And that just sort of gives me new energy and new life all the time for my character because every time I think that okay well this is as much that can happen to this woman, then I go to a table read and I’m like you’re kidding me.

And so for me a lot of it has to do with these amazing storylines that the writers give us and I have to say we all so love our own show.

We’re dorks for our own show and we so enjoy it that it’s very easy for me to keep my enthusiasm up because it’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever been a part of.

And we still have a giddiness and just a real sense of fun even five years into it.

Ed: Yeah. Well I would agree with that and totally, that it’s really kind of what the writers give us in terms of arcs. And I really feel like Andy is constantly evolved throughout his life on the show and will continue to do so.

But I’ll just add to that that one of the things on set that keeps things really fresh is the dialogue between us and the writer who wrote a given episode. So like…

Angela: Totally.

7 comments

  1. They are such wonderful people! I love how careful they are with their characters, and how they try their best to give US the best, not just reading some lines. This is a wonderful, insightful interview, and makes me even more glad that Ed Helms joined the cast in Season 3, he fits in like…um….like a analogy to show how good he fits in.

  2. These two crack me up! I loved the story about Angela having to clean out the fridge! It’s amazing how situations from The Office, regardless of how bizarre and weird they are, have some real-life basis. As an almost-marketing-graduate, I’m excited (and scared) to get out there!

  3. This was so great! I love it when we get to hear about the actor’s perspectives on their own characters. Also I have a new favorite Ed Helms quote: “I have prided myself on the lack of dignity I have.” Awesome.

  4. The ‘altered states of mind’ comment just melted my brain! Thursday can’t come soon enough.

  5. “But he did it and by jobe, he is doing it.” TWSS!haha. awesome transcript! I love how dedicated Angela and Ed are to their characters. it really shows in their work on the show and how realistic and complex their characters are. also, I think it’s great how the writers take part in the action and go beyond just writing the scripts. it doesn’t sound like that happens all the time. The simple things in life are the best, and The Office is the best! thank you Angela and Ed! you guys are awesome!

  6. Thank you for this! Wonderful interview and very funny. These are the things I come to this site for and it delivers. :)

  7. I was so happy when Ed Helms joined the cast. Andy has become my favorite character, and I think Ed Helms has given a wonderful sort of endearing quality to Andy that really makes him three-dimensional. Although I knew it was love immediately after delivering the line “I’m really going to shoot you” in the Call of Duty sub plot. that game makes everyone angry, especially if a teammate decides to snipe in Carentan. i can only imagine what it did to andy. thanks for the transcript!

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