- - Why This ‘Office’ Star Avoided Eye Contact With Steve Carell for Years

Nicole MooreJanuary 20, 2026 at 12:22 AM

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Steve Carell certainly made an impression as his obnoxious, but mostly well-meaning character, manager Michael Scott, on The Office. Carell's former Office castmates, Angela Kinsey andRainn Wilson, recently let fans know that the 40-Year-Old Virgin star was just as funny on set as he is on screen.

During a November 2025 panel at the FAN EXPO San Francisco 2025, Kinsey and Wilson shared that they were impressed and inspired by Carell's acting abilities.

According to Kinsey, who played no-nonsense accountant, Angela Martin, Carell "is like a masterclass in acting" with both comedy and "heartfelt moments." She also shared that she couldn't make eye contact with Carell while filming because she would break character.

"He would make you tear up and make you laugh. And pretty early on, I learned I couldn't make eye contact with him because he would just like come for my soul," said Kinsey during the fan convention. "So I couldn't, I would just laugh, and then I didn't want to be that person. So, I would look at his neck. So, I spent nine years looking at his neck. Is that weird?"

Wilson, who played Michael's devoted Dunder Mifflin employee, Dwight Schrute, also said he learned "the single greatest comedy acting lesson" by working with Carell on The Office. He explained that while Carell is "the sweetest, kindest, kind of most normal guy," the actor "has this mad genius comedic ability." Wilson also said that Carell's "improv background" made it so he could continue a scene as Michael "in any given situation." According to Wilson, he would often try to test Carell's improv abilities by doing something unexpected as Dwight.

"I would just, a lot of times, just all of a sudden take my shirt off or say something totally nonsensical. And he'd just be like, 'Dwight, what are you doing? Put your shirt on. And you know, no one wants to talk to you about llamas right now. Will you shut up? We've got to focus on this,'" recalled Wilson during the panel.

Carell left The Office after its seventh season, per IMDb. He did return for the nine-season show's final episode, which premiered in 2013.

This story was originally published by Parade on Jan 20, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”