In a recent interview, actor Rainn Wilson admitted that during his time on NBC’s comedy “The Office,” he spent “several years” feeling unsatisfied with his lot in life, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
While appearing on Bill Maher’s podcast “Club Random,” Wilson, who played Dwight Schrute in “The Office,” explained that despite the popularity of the Emmy-winning show and working with a talented group of actors, writers, and directors, “I wasn’t enjoying it.”
Wilson admitted to feeling dissatisfied that he was doing a sitcom instead of starring in a movie like comedians Will Ferrell or Jack Black. He said he was also unhappy with the hundreds of thousands of dollars he made appearing in “The Office,” wishing instead to be making millions. Being a TV star wasn’t enough for him; instead, he wanted to be a movie star, Wilson said.
“It was never enough,” Wilson told Maher.
Maher revealed that he was a big fan of “The Office,” telling Wilson that it felt almost “therapeutic” to end his day watching recordings of the show.
Wilson said he has heard so many people say “The Office” was therapeutic, especially during the COVID lockdowns. He said when he was first cast in the series, he was more concerned about being able to afford to buy a house than thinking about how “giving laughter” might be a “therapeutic remedy” that could be a “salve to a hurting populace.”
He added that it was an “honor” to be “part of something like that.”
Wilson’s show “Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss” premiered on Peacock in May. In the series, Wilson travels the world to find the secrets of “the happiest societies on Earth.”
Wilson made headlines in March after admitting on Twitter that Hollywood has “an anti-Christian bias.”
He said when a character in “The Last of Us” first read from the Bible, he knew the character would be a “horrific villain.” He wondered if a TV show could ever include a “Bible-reading” character that is “loving and kind.”
