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Stars of the beloved US sitcom The Office, Mindy Kaling, Ellie Kemper, Jenna Fischer, and Angela Kinsey, reunited at the Actor Awards, offering a candid and humorous look back at gruelling early 2000s television production.
The quartet, who portrayed employees of Dunder Mifflin in the hit series, shared their experiences on stage. Kaling quipped, “We are women who survived 22-episode seasons.”
Kemper added, “You didn’t plan a season around a pregnancy,” with Kaling continuing, “Yeah, you gave birth on camera and then named the baby after a grip.”
Fischer recalled the relentless schedule: “It meant Christmas episodes and Valentine’s episodes and Super Bowl episodes,” before Kaling interjected, “And sometimes filler episodes that were kind of bad.” Kemper, however, saw the silver lining: “But it didn’t matter because there was always another one right around the corner.”
Angela Kinsey, who co-hosts the popular Office Ladies rewatch podcast with Fischer, noted, “We turned our experience into a podcast because people love behind the scenes stories.” Kaling, also a writer on the show, then playfully asked, “Should I do a podcast about writing?” to which Kemper humorously retorted, “Oh Mindy, no-one cares about writers.”
The group later presented the award for outstanding ensemble in a comedy series to The Studio.
Angela Kinsey, Jenna Fischer, screenwriter Mindy Kaling and Ellie Kemper present the award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series during the 32nd Annual Actor Awards (AFP via Getty Images)
The awards ceremony also saw a reunion for Homeland stars Claire Danes and Damian Lewis, who presented the best ensemble in a TV drama award.
The duo joked about never winning the prize themselves, having lost out to shows like Downton Abbey and Breaking Bad. They also quipped about working with a then-unknown Timothee Chalamet on the show in 2012: “We made you, Timothee. Just saying. And we’re ready for a recount!”
Danes and Lewis subsequently presented the award for outstanding ensemble in a drama to medical drama The Pitt.
Sinners took home the top prize of the evening, winning Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. In addition, its lead star, Michael B Jordan, also took home the top men’s acting prize. Jessie Buckley won the women’s category for Hamnet. Nominated for seven awards, One Battle After Another took home just one trophy for Sean Penn’s performance.
The late Catherine O’Hara won for her work on the Apple TV comedy series The Studio, with the show’s creator, Seth Rogan, delivering an emotional speech to accept the trophy on her behalf. The series led the TV categories with the most nominations at five, ultimately taking home three.