We Finally Might Know Who The Scranton Strangler Was On The Office

NBC's iconic workplace comedy "The Office" aired its series finale more than eight years ago, and in the ensuing years, one single question has dogged the show's diehard fans. That question is, "Who is the Scranton Strangler?" The infamous killer first made their way into the Dunder Mifflin narrative in Season 6 of "The Office," and would receive regular mentions on the series over the course of its final seasons on NBC. However, at no point in the show's run did "The Office" creative team reveal the actual identity of the Scranton Strangler.

Given the general void of information surrounding the identity of the killer, it's more than understandable that fans of "The Office" have taken it upon themselves to finger the culprit. To date, they've postulated that the killer may well be someone from inside the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin, with popular theories pointing toward the cagey Creed Bratton (Creed Bratton), the anger-plagued Andy Bernard (Ed Helms), and the potentially unstable HR man Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein). But a late-in-the-game theory posited by a superfan of "The Office" in 2020 offered up a most unexpected theory on the matter. And to the surprise of pretty much everyone, the actor who portrayed that character chimed in with a surprising opinion on its plausibility.  

As recently covered by Esquire, the theory in question was first shared in a Twitter post from "The Office" superfan Jules Suzdaltsev in February of 2020 and pointed the finger directly at Dunder Mifflin heavy David Wallace (Andy Buckley). The beloved character and level-headed boss doesn't immediately seem to fit the profile of a cold-hearted serial killer, but Buckley himself replied to the theory with a cheeky tweet of his own that even offered potential proof of Wallace's misdeeds, "Very well could be Jules! He had it in him to just snap. Hot tub middle of the day, boozing, creating the Suck It. And what was he doing in Season 8 the 3rd or 4th to last Ep. Runs into Andy at a local Scranton Charity Dinner? Why was he in Scranton? Perhaps you're correct."

That's hardly hard evidence that David Wallace was, in fact, the Scranton Strangler, but even casual fans of "The Office" might agree Buckley's cryptic insight qualifies as a major scoop of sorts. The question now becomes whether "The Office" brain trust will confirm the theory themselves. In a truly worthy comedic turn of events, Suzdaltsev didn't actually see Buckley's response until very recently, seemingly missing his chance to break this story wide open with a little help from folks who might be more in the know. And as things stand, the theory of David Wallace being the Scranton Strangler will remain just that.