18 Actors Who Went On To Have Big Careers After Guest Starring On "The Office"

A lot of them ended up starring in their own TV shows.

Anyone who's watched (or rewatched) The Office for the first time in the past few years has probably had a lot of "hey, that's [insert name of famous actor]!" moments.

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While the show did plenty of stunt casting — the Season 7 finale alone featured one-off appearances by Jim Carrey, Ray Romano, and Will Arnett — there are quite a few performers who had small roles on the show before their careers took off.

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Here are 19 of them:

1. Scott Adsit

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Scott Adsit had been popping up on a number of TV shows before starring as Pete in 30 Rock, and his one-off role as the put-upon photographer in the Season 2 episode of The Office, "Conflict Resolution" was his last TV appearance before 30 Rock premiered a few months later. After the series ended, he served as the voice of Baymax in Big Hero 6 and a handful of miniseries that followed. 

2. Trevor Einhorn

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Frasier fans likely recognized Einhorn, who played the titular therapist's son, when he appeared as prospective Dunder Mifflin intern Justin in the Season 4 episode, "Job Fair," but it wasn't until later that he made a name for himself with a 14-episode guest stint on Mad Men and starring role in The Magicians.

3. Max Carver

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Eric the intern in "Gossip," the Season 6 premiere of The Office, was Max Carver's first onscreen role. He went on to have recurring roles in Desperate Housewives, The Leftovers, and Teen Wolf alongside his twin brother Charlie. The pair also recently appeared in The Batman.

4. Rich Sommer

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Rich Sommer is one of those actors who, when you see him once, he seems to be everywhere. The role of Alex, one of Pam's classmates in Season 4, was one of his first onscreen gigs (he'd previously appeared in The Devil Wears Prada), and since then he's starred in dozens of films and TV series, including Mad Men, both Wet Hot American Summer miniseries, the thriller Summer of '84, and GLOW.

5. Nelson Franklin

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Like Sommer, Nelson Franklin has been all over the place since appearing in Seasons 5 and 6 of The Office. There's some debate on whether he played one or two characters — he first showed up in "Job Fair" as a graphic design recruiter, then later as Nick, Dunder Mifflin's new IT guy. Following the gig, he had parts in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Argo, and Jobs, and recurring roles in The Millers, New Girl, Veep, and Black-ish.

6. Andrew Santino

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Punk'd fans might have recognized stand-up comedian Andrew Santino when he showed up as the "salty" seaman trying to take Andy's boat to the Caribbean in the Season 9 episode "The Boat." Santino had appeared throughout the 12th season of the prank show earlier the same year (including as the "groom" whose fake wedding Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift set ablaze). Since then he's appeared in numerous other TV shows, such as Arrested Development, The League, and as a regular in I'm Dying Up Here and Dave. He currently hosts a podcast alongside fellow comedian Bobby Lee.

7. David Mazouz

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A few years before becoming a young Bruce Wayne in Gotham, David Mazouz was terrorizing Dunder Mifflin as Robert California's creepy son Bert in the Season 8 episode, "Spooked."

8. Kevin McHale

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The annoyed pizza delivery teen in the Season 4 episode, "Launch Party," was one of Kevin McHale's earliest roles, and it was less than two years later that he landed the role of Artie on Glee, which ran for six seasons.

9. Yvette Nicole Brown

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Jeong isn't the only Greendale Community College alum to appear on The Office before starring in Community. Yvette Nicole Brown played Dwight's coworker Paris during his brief stint at Staples in the Season 3 episode The Return. In addition to Community, she's since built an extensive voice-acting CV. 

10. Rob Riggle

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Before playing Captain Jack in the Season 2 episode, "Booze Cruise," Rob Riggle served as a featured player in seasons 29 and 30 of Saturday Night Live, going on to appear in comedies like Talladega Nights, Step Brothers, The Hangover, and the 21 Jump Street movies, and TV series such as Wilfred, The League, and Modern Family.

11. Melissa Rauch

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Melissa Rauch's Big Bang Theory character Bernadette had technically already been introduced by the time the actor showed up on The Office as Pam's fellow new mom in the Season 6 episode "The Delivery," but at that point, she was only five or so episodes into what would become a regular starring role on the CBS sitcom. Not long after her appearance on The Office, she had a small arc as Summer on True Blood, and would ultimately go on to star in the Night Court reboot.

12. Wendi McLendon-Covey

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Wendi McLendon-Covey was already known for Reno 911! by the time she guest-starred on The Office as Marie the concierge in the Season 5 episode "Business Trip," but it's fair to say her turns as Rita in Bridesmaids and Beverly in The Goldbergs really put her on the map. She also recently lent her voice to the Pixar film, Elemental, and has done voicework for American Dad!, Bob's Burgers, and more.

13. Brett Gelman

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Before bringing to life the beloved Murray Bauman on Stranger Things, and the less-beloved Martin on Fleabag, Brett Gelman appeared in quite a few other TV shows and films like Another Period, Love, and Jobs. He also played the harried magician in the Season 8 episode, "Welcome Party," of The Office.

14. Sam Richardson

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Colin, Jim's Athlead coworker, in Seasons 9 and 10 was Sam Richardson's second-ever onscreen role, and it wasn't long before he landed a recurring role on Veep as Richard. He's been steadily working ever since, starring in Werewolves Within and The Afterparty and filling supporting roles in Promising Young Women and Hocus Pocus 2.

15. Ken Jeong

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Ken Jeong was still practicing medicine when he guest-starred as Bill, a member of Michael's improv class in the Season 2 episode, "Email Surveillance." Over the next two years, he had a small role in an episode of Entourage and appeared in a TV movie before a memorable turn as the delivery doctor in Knocked Up. Since then, he's appeared in dozens of movies and TV series, including the Hangover series, Community, and Crazy Rich Asians. He also starred in his own sitcom, Dr. Ken, for two seasons between 2015 and 2017.

16. Randall Park

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Like many others on this list, sitcom fans probably had a "Hey, I know that guy" moment once he popped up in the Season 9 episode "Andy's Ancestry." Before playing Steve, aka "Asian Jim," he could be seen in New Girl, CSI, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and iCarly, among other series. Following his stint on The Office, he continued a guest arc as Governor Danny Chung on Veep, starred in The Interview as Kim Jong-Un, and joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Agent Jimmy Woo. 

17. Dakota Johnson

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Dakota Johnson had appeared in a couple of pretty high-profile projects before playing a new Dunder Mifflin employee (also named Dakota) in the series finale, but it was Fifty Shades of Grey — which hit theaters a couple of years later — that cemented her place in Hollywood. 

18. Evan Peters

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By the time Evan Peters appeared in the Season 7 premiere "Nepotism" as Michael's snot-nosed nephew Luke, he'd already racked up a pretty impressive list of guest-starring roles in other big TV series, including Criminal Minds, The Ghost Whisperer, and House. Less than two weeks after "Nepotism" aired, the first season of American Horror Story premiered, launching both Peters' long working relationship with Ryan Murphy and his career in earnest.

Who's your favorite Office guest star? Let us know in the comments, and head to Peacock to give the show a (re)watch.

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