Actress Dakota Johnson, now 34, recently opened up about her experience filming a cameo for the hit sitcom The Office. In an appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers, she revealed that her time on set was “honestly the worst time” of her life.
Despite being a fan of the show, Johnson’s expectations of a brief appearance were shattered when she ended up filming for two weeks and only had a minimal role in the final episode.
Johnson played the character Dakota, a new employee in the accounting department. Her character’s introduction came after the departure of Kevin, played by Brian Baumgartner, who was fired for manipulating the company’s financial records.
While Johnson was excited to be a part of her favorite series, she confessed that the atmosphere behind the scenes was not as she had imagined.
The cast and crew were in the midst of wrapping up the beloved comedy after a successful ten-year run, which created some bittersweet emotions. Johnson described the dynamics on set as “weird” and explained that there were tensions that had been building up over the years.
Although she tried to fit in with the cast, who included returning stars such as Steve Carrell, Mindy Kaling, and B.J. Novak, Johnson felt like an outsider.
As a rising actress known mainly for her small role in The Social Network, Johnson’s presence on the set went largely unnoticed. She recalled that some cast members barely acknowledged her, and she felt like nobody cared about her being there.
However, Johnson did manage to find humor in the situation, jokingly attributing her occasional use of curse words to her frustrating experience on set.
Seth Meyers, the host of the show, lightened the mood by joking about Johnson’s swearing, playfully blaming it on the infamous “Office” atmosphere. Johnson shared another amusing detail about her time on set: she spent a lot of her screen time in the background, faxing documents.
Meyers couldn’t help but commend Johnson’s realistic faxing skills and humorously mentioned that some actors tend to “mail it in” when they’re in the background of such shows. Johnson playfully teased that if she had to be stuck doing administrative tasks, she would make sure to “deliver.”
Although Johnson’s experience on The Office may not have been the most positive, it did not deter her career. She went on to land her breakout role in the Fifty Shades of Grey film series in 2015 and is currently set to star in the upcoming film Madame Web. Despite her challenging time on the set, Johnson’s talent and determination have propelled her to success in Hollywood.
