What The Cast Of The Office Looks Like Today

We all know the feeling. You open up your Netflix account, browse around for a while, and pick some new series or a buried B-list movie you've never heard of before. A few minutes later, you turn it off and go back to re-watching episodes of The Office.

But while characters like Dwight Schrute, PB & J, Stanley, Oscar, Creed and the rest of the gang of lovable misfits will always hold a tender place in our hearts, the truth is, while characters portrayed on television might remain immortal, the actors who actually play them are living, breathing human beings. They age, have lives beyond the set, and often go on to bigger, better things, or simply disappear into relative anonymity. So where are these guys now? Where has this cast that collectively delivered such a splendid comedy for nearly a decade moved on to five years after the last episode wrapped up? Here's a look back at all the actors you remember from The Office — and a peek at where they are now.

There's little doubt that it was the flawless performance delivered by none other than Steve Carell as Michael Scott that gave this show the wings it needed to fly. Carell's character was the glue that held everything together. He even won a Golden Globe in 2006 specifically for his work on the first season.

But of course, Carell's career arc was not solely defined by the series. By the time the first season of The Office rolled around, he had already made a splash in several films, including Bruce Almighty and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, he continued to do quite a bit of extracurricular acting during his time on the show, and he hasn't slowed down since he left in 2011, taking on other roles in well-known movies like Foxcatcher, The Big Short, and playing lead voices in Horton Hears a Who and the Despicable Me movies.

Oh, and did we mention that his wife was and still is Nancy Walls? Sound familiar? That's right, Walls also happens to be his girlfriend Carol from the earlier seasons of the show. Yeah, that's pretty cool.

If the character of Michael Scott held The Office together, it was undoubtedly Assistant to the Regional Manager Dwight Schrute who farmed a huge portion of the slapstick, laugh-inducing nonsense that gave the show such a spark of life.

While playing the quirky paper salesman/beet farmer was the role of a lifetime for actor Rainn Wilson, it wasn't the first or the last stop of his career. Wilson's first silver screen appearance came in 1999 in the cult classic comedy Galaxy Quest, a sci-fi space romp that had him shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, and Sam Rockwell.

Since The Office wrapped up in 2013, Wilson has continued to ride his career momentum, playing Harry Mudd in the CBS's sci-fi series Star Trek: Discovery as well as Morris in the 2018 thriller The Meg. The TV star has also been busy writing his autobiography The Bassoon King (published in 2015) and generally keeping everyone laughing with his immensely popular twitter feed. He's also branched out into digital content, founding the successful SoulPancake brand.

Next in line, we have lovable prankster Jim Halpert. A defining part of the show from day one, on both the comedy and the drama side of the aisle, his romance with Pam and his endless, antagonistic friendship with Dwight were hallmark elements of the show.

While Krasinski's star has risen to unbelievable heights, he was a bit of a nobody when he was cast. He started at Brown University and spent time teaching English in Costa Rica before he moved on to acting. He was making ends meet as a waiter and doing commercials and minor roles when he hit his big break with The Office... in spite of the fact that he accidentally insulted Greg Daniels (the show's executive producer) in the process.

Since The Office, Krasinski's only increased his career momentum. Among a host of other accomplishments, he's become a film producer (credits include the Academy Award-winning Manchester by the Sea, which he helped hatch the story for); he also produced, directed, and starred in the hit thriller A Quiet Place (alongside his wife Emily Blunt) and had the lead role in Amazon Prime's original series Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan. He was even named one of Time Magazine's "Most Influential People of 2018." You can read the writeup (penned by Chris Pratt) here.

The romance between Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly was a crucial element of the show that stood out from the transformative, wandering days of the first season, to the storyline-driven narrative of its later stages. Pam was "the complete package," to quote Michael Scott in season 5... even if it was right before he tried to use her to frame Toby.

Pam portrayer Jenna Fischer got her start with a number of smaller roles in the years before The Office. She also had a steady connection with the Gunn family, taking her first acting class (taught by her mother) with Gilmore Girls actor Sean Gunn and then growing up to marry his brother James Gunn (who's had a whirlwind of his own major career changes). The two were together for years, eventually getting married before separating in an amicable divorce in 2007.

Since the final credits rolled on The Office, Fischer's been busy: She starred in the comedy sci-fi mini-series You, Me and the Apocalypse and more recently in Splitting Up Together. Formal acting aside, she also appeared on Celebrity Poker Showdown in 2006, losing to Keegan-Michael Key in the final moments of the episode, and acted in the off-Broadway play Reasons to Be Happy in 2013.

Always trying to keep a low profile, get as little done as possible, and just make it to that retirement package, Leslie David Baker's Stanley Hudson was a consistent Office highlight.

As for Mr. Baker himself, his life onscreen has been rather muted since his breakout role as a paper salesman. Before landing The Office, Baker had played a number of smaller roles, but he was hardly a known figure when he was launched into the limelight in the pilot episode of The Office in 2005. While Baker has maintained a trickle of smaller appearances since Stanley retired in Florida, his acting hasn't been prolific. He played Curtis on Still the King and more recently appeared in The Happytime Murders. He also played voice roles in Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie and Puppy Dog Pals.

Perhaps Baker's best two moves since The Office made him a familiar face have come in the form of an Office-inspired commercial for FileMaker and a robe-rocking, middle-ages crisis music video for his 2011 debut single, "2 Be Simple."

Next, we have the most inappropriately placed worker in the history of office spaces: accountant Kevin Malone, whose aimless, incompetent work and clueless commentary were staples on the show that always warranted a laugh.

Kevin Malone's real-life counterpart, Brian Baumgartner, attended high school in Atlanta, Georgia with his future costar Ed Helms. Baumgartner got his start on shows like LAX and Arrested Development (where he showed up along with a host of other Office vets, including Helms).

After making it big on The Office, Baumgarner has continued to appear on shows like Chicago Fire and Life in Pieces. He also appeared alongside a host of other television stars (including Rainn Wilson) in Ingrid Michaelson's "Time Machine" music video, serenading the singer in bed, and he's proven to be an above average golfer, coming in at 49th on Golf Digest's list of Hollywood's Top 100 Golfers.

Sitting across from Kevin Malone was the rigid Angela Martin, often adorned in gray and always obsessed with her cats. Her on-again, off-again romance happily ended with Angela Martin becoming the traditionally and fiercely matriarchal Angela Schrute, but where has miss Kinsey moved on to?

Kinsey's early life was about as unique as they come. Raised in Indonesia (yes, she speaks Indonesian!), she built up a career with roles on hits like Step by Step and King of the Hill before landing her role on The Office. After faithfully sticking with the show through all nine seasons, Kinsey has since steadily continued to act in numerous roles, from New Girl to Hulu's comedy series The Hotwives of Orlando and The Hotwives of Las Vegas. She also created a huge buzz (and an entire Instagram account) when she bought a jacket in a vending machine... you read that right, a vending machine. She's also still besties with Jenna Fischer, which is pretty sweet.

Who didn't love the slow evolution of Phyllis from a shy, quiet co-worker who was always being stepped on and put in her place to a strong-willed character that refused to be pushed around? The best part of the Queen of Vance Refrigeration's character, though, is that she was played by one of the show's casting agents, Phyllis Smith.

Smith had quite a journey before she found her way into Hollywood. Among other things, she has a degree in elementary education, was a cheerleader for the St. Louis Cardinals for a year in the '70s, and stumbled onto The Office set as an actor when she was helping read scripts as a casting agent and was chosen to play the role she was reading.

After her magnificent run on The Office, Smith has continued to act, appearing regularly on the Netflix series OA and playing the voice of Sadness on Pixar's Inside Out.

Sure, she might have been The Office's resident drunk, but come on, she was getting her Ph.D. in School Psychology for the first seven seasons of the show. It was just her college years! Regardless, Meredith's character became defined by awkward-yet-hilarious moments that seemed to always revolve around alcohol and sex.

Meredith portrayer Kate Flannery was seen in a number of smaller roles before The Office and, like John Krasinski, was waiting tables when she got the role. She had a wise lack of confidence in the longevity of the new show, not quitting her job until the second season. However, after that, she was off to the races. Since The Office ended, Flannery has appeared in numerous shows, including Brooklyn Nine-Nine, New Girl, and OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes. In addition, amongst other things, she's continued to tour with her cult comedy lounge act The Lampshades and helped out with Jane Lynch's Christmas album A Swingin' Little Christmas. The duo took their act on the road in 2018, debuting their stage show Two Lost Souls.

Creed Bratton (or is that really his name?) was memorable for his witty, often discomfiting one-liners that ranged from observations about growing mung beans to the need for a third chair to a fear of not getting to scuba.

The only primary character on the show to use his full name on the set, Creed Bratton was played by none other than Creed Bratton. Man, this guy's got a lot of name jokes going on. The best part? It may not have even been the actor's birth name! So where has Creed Bratton (the actor) found himself since Creed Bratton (the character) was ushered off the show in handcuffs by a couple of policemen?

If there's one thing in this multi-talented actor's toolkit that seems to have always stood out from the crowd, it's his music career. The man's been rocking it since the 1960s when he toured with his band the Grass Roots, and he's still releasing albums since The Office wrapped up. He even travels and does a music and comedy show. If you want more Creed, just check out his blog. (Psych! Here it is for real.)

From his sarcastic, rude, elitist personality to his nearly constant desire to quit his job, which manifested in tirades furiously uttered in Español, the character of Oscar Martinez had a spectacular character arc over the show's lifespan.

Oscar Nuñez is a Cuban-born actor whose career started with work in the Shock of the Funny theater company and the Groundlings. He kicked off his onscreen career with a minor role in Curb Your Enthusiasm, but, as with so many of his other Office co-stars, the man's true popularity came when he got a job at Dunder Mifflin. During his time on the show, Nuñez took on the side gig of judging the 2010 Miss USA Contest where he stirred things up with his questions. Since The Office wrapped up in 2013, he's remained busy appearing on numerous shows, including a 2018 gig as a contestant on Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition, which should prove a nice change of pace from the whole accountant thing.

Probably the most extreme, manipulative, and lost character on the show, Ryan Howard began as "the temp," rose to "the exec," and then spectacularly crashed and burned. Nevertheless, he always maintained Michael Scott's rabid loyalty and dropped into any scene that needed a half dried-up, overly thought out comment that didn't quite apply.

While Ryan Howard may have been a wonderfully entertaining waste of a character, B.J. Novak has been anything but. Destined for Office stardom, he went to high school with none other than John Krasinski. The two literally played little league together.

Since Novak wrapped things up with his acting, producing, and writing career on The Office, he's kept one foot in the acting game, showing up both in front of and behind the camera on shows like The Mindy Project and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, but he's made a bigger splash in the publishing world, writing several popular books including the kids' volume The Book With No Pictures. You can see him reading it here.

You can't talk about Ryan Howard without including Kelly Kapoor. The two struggled through a manipulatively messy relationship that stretched from one end of the show to the other, all as the characters proved immune to any form of learning from their mistakes.

Kelly Kapoor portrayer Mindy Kaling has had a much more productive and successful life than the one we've seen on the screen. For starters, she and B.J. Novak have had a longtime relationship that has been complicated, cute, romantic, and friendly. Kaling herself, both with and without Novak by her side, has gone on from her early days as an actor, producer, and writer on The Office to serve in all three of those same functions in her hit series The Mindy Project. As if that wasn't enough, she's also picked up roles all over the place, from appearances in shows like The Muppets and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia to acting and voice acting in movies like Ocean's Eight, Inside Out, Wreck-It Ralph, and A Wrinkle in Time.

Now it's time for everyone's favorite Dunder Mifflin musician and Cornell grad. From his early days in season 3 as an overconfident, entitled jerkwad to the subdued fiancé of the iron-willed Angela to his reemergence as the boss, Andy Bernard quietly but steadily rose to be one of the main faces of the show by the time it wrapped up.

Ed Helms, who brought the Andy character to life with a one-of-a-kind abrasive charm, has not slowed down a bit since he finished the show. From his early days as a Daily Show correspondent on through his time as an Office superstar, Helms has seen his career only go uphill. In more recent years he's added films to his repertoire, including The Hangover trilogy, the National Lampoon's Vacation series reboot, and even an appearance in Maroon 5's music video for "Don't Wanna Know." An accomplished banjo player, he's also in a bluegrass band, The Lonesome Trio, and has remained deeply involved in the music world.

Poor Toby. Every show needs a character to beat up on, and The Office (and Michael Scott in particular) did that very, very well with Dunder Mifflin's beleaguered HR rep. However, the depressing journey of Toby Flenderson is given a bit of a redemptive twist when one considers that Toby actor Paul Lieberstein was not just an actor on the show, he was also a writer... and a showrunner from seasons five to eight before stepping down. There's something special about a writer taking on an especially twisted role that just makes it that much more special.

While Lieberstein has acted in a handful of productions since his Office days, including Bad Teacher and The Mindy Project, he's really kept things focused on his original bread and butter, producing and writing for numerous shows, and even writing, directing, and starring in the 2018 comedy Song of Back and Neck.

The wisecracking, quietly confident, and occasionally intimidating head of "the others" — e.g. the warehouse — Darryl Philbin always had a special, low-key dynamic on The Office, particularly when set against the insecurities of Michael Scott, who always seemed to desperately seek Darryl's approval in everything they did together. Even after Carell left the show, Darryl continued to be a foundational pillar of the series.

Darryl portrayer Craig Robinson has had a busy time since his days on The Office. From his role as Nick in the two Hot Tub Time Machine movies to a part in Sausage Party and his single-season TV series Mr. Robinson and Ghosted, he has remained steadily in front of a camera and has shown no sign of stopping. Acting aside, Robinson has also continued to flash his musical skills, performing on multiple soundtracks and movies that he's acted in.

Coming on later in the series' run, Erin Hannon was the shy, innocent, insecure girl who did her best to fill the enormous vacuum that Pam Beesly left behind the receptionist desk when she joined the rest of the sales team. From a cutesy, angelic youngster to Andy Bernard's girlfriend and then finally growing into a woman strong enough to branch off on her own, Erin's story, while shorter than many of the others on the show, was just as heartwarming, hilarious, and memorable as anyone's.

Erin served as the breakout role for actress Ellie Kemper, who made quick use of the momentum The Office afforded, going on to appear in Bridesmaids, 21 Jump Street, The Mindy Project, and, of course, the Netflix hit series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. In addition to all this, she's also an accomplished writer, having contributed to the likes of The Huffington Post and The Onion and publishing a memoir, My Squirrel Days, in 2018. She also helped co-host The Today Show for a spell in 2015.