The cast of The Office spin-off The Paper had some unexpected guests on the first day of filming – a visit from none other than the stars of the original series, Steve Carell and John Krasinski.
The Paper star Sabrina Impacciatore recounted the memorable moment in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, stating they were left ‘fainting.’
The 57-year-old White Lotus star popped up at Universal Studios Lot in Los Angeles to give their well wishes.
Sabrina described, ‘No makeup yet. We are very anxious. Like, oh my God, we’re so scared. And then we hear knock, knock. Someone enters the trailer, and it’s Steve Carell and John Krasinski!
‘We’re fainting. Like, what? Can you imagine? Isn’t it crazy? The first day of shooting!’
The actors — Steve, 63, and John, 45 — respectively played Michael Scott and Jim Halpert on the hit NBC sitcom.
Former The Office co-stars Steve Carell and John Krasinski reunited to surprise the cast of spinoff show The Paper on day one of filming
It turned out that Steve and John had been working on a commercial for the Italian coffee brand Lavazza when they made their cameo on The Paper’s set.
Sabrina said about the happy coincidence: ‘I thought, this is a blessing. Italian coffee, which is the coffee that I’ve been drinking all my life.’
She also told the outlet that she watched The Office ahead of her role as newspaper editor Esmeralda Grand in The Paper.
And the actress became ‘addicted’ to the show, later urging creator Greg Daniels to tell Steve she thought of him as ‘one of the most incredible artists on this planet.’
The Italian native eventually took matters into her own hands as she hopped on a flight from Rome to New York City to see Steve in the Broadway show Uncle Vanya in 2024.
The dark-haired beauty explained, ‘I bought a f***ing flight. I went to see the show. I went to the green room. I waited for him.
‘He came out. I was shaking. I said, “I’m Sabrina! Can you bless me?” I needed his blessing [for The Paper]! He was the sweetest.’
And the performer remembered Carell being ‘warm’ and ‘encouraging’ during their first encounter.
The actors – Steve, 63, and John, 45 – played Michael Scott and Jim Halpert respectively
The Paper will land on Peacock on September 4, with all ten episodes premiering at once
The show comes from Greg Daniels, the creative mind behind The Office and King of the Hill
The seasoned entertainer gave her a bit of a pep talk.
‘He said, “These people are brilliant. You are going to have the best experience of your life. You’re going to be great.” He was giving me confidence,’ Sabrina shared.
And she’s grateful for the exchange as she declared, ‘I will never forget that. Never. It was so right to do that.’
Steven starred in The Office for seven seasons from 2005-2011 and John was on the show for its entire nine seasons, ending in 2013.
The Paper will land on Peacock on September 4, with all ten episodes premiering at once.
