Watching The Office

Sorry, I’m not a fan of Mad Men. It’s a big hit with critics and I think it’s an Emmy front runner this year. I tried getting into the show a lot of times but as a woman, I don’t feel happy watching it for its chauvinism. So, this actor, Rich Sommer, isn’t familiar to me. He will be though, once his The Office appearance airs on September 25th (the season premiere).

As scooped by Ausiello on EW, his guest appearance on the show is  “being closely guarded—an Office insider would only reveal that his character “ties in with a surprise twist”.

Wonder what that twist is about?  Jan’s new boyfriend? Michael’s new boss, the guy replacing Ryan (who we last saw was cuffed and sent to jail)? And why am I getting a Jim+Dwight vibe in this photo (to the right)?

More about this news after the cut…

Question: I am dying, dying, for anything you have on The Office. Please tell me you have something! — Meghan
Ausiello: I have something! Thanks to Monday’s Aus Files scoop, you already know that Mad Men’s Rich Sommer is guest starring in the Sept. 25 season premiere. Well, what you don’t know is that if it weren’t for the writers strike, it probably never would have happened! Sommer says the idea for his Office visit first came up when he met producer/star Mindy Kaling last winter on the picket line. “Mindy is a big fan of Mad Men and she knew that I was a big fan of The Office,” he explains, “so we mused about finding some way to get me over there.” Sommer insists he’s been “sworn to secrecy” about the specifics of his guest stint, although he does admit that he’s playing a “very different character” from Harry Crane, the 1960s ad exec he portrays on Mad Men. “When you see it,” he adds, “you’ll understand why I can’t say anything.” And when you pick up this week’s issue of EW and turn to page 54, you’ll understand why I had to.

Question: The Office returns in seven weeks. Surely, that deserves a scoop. — Mark
Ausiello: Based on what I’m hearing about the premiere, it’s either going to go down as the funniest Office episode ever or NBC’s most blatant piece of cross-promotion yet. Or some combination of both.

Via Ausiello