Rainn Wilson Shares Surprising Comment on His ‘The Office’ Character

Rainn Wilson is seen everywhere thanks to his role as Dwight Schrute on The Office, but the actor has played many, many other roles in his career. Dwight is not even his favorite character, even though it earned him three Emmy nominations and a place in television history. Instead, Wilson’s favorite character comes from one of his most underrated projects.

During a new interview with Collider, Wilson said he understands that everyone knows him from playing Dwight. “That’ll be on my tombstone. My epitaph will be, ‘The guy who played Dwight,’” Wilson, 56, said. “But I did dozens and dozens of roles before I played Dwight. I’ve played dozens of roles after Dwight.”

Wilson’s favorite role is actually Frank Darbo, the short-order cook who becomes a superhero in James Gunn’s wild 2010 black comedy Super. Although the movie was a box office disappointment, it has become a true cult favorite. It was the second movie Gunn directed, and his last before he joined Marvel Studios to helm the Guardians of the Galaxy movies.

“I would say my favorite role, or one I would love to be remembered for, is the movie Super by James Gunn,” Wilson told Collider. “It was, again, super low budget. We shot that super quick in Shreveport, scenic Shreveport, Louisiana. But I think the combination of humor, darkness, tragedy, insane imagination, my brain gets touched by the finger of God. I think it’s an extraordinary work, and I’m really proud to have been a part of it.”

Wilson’s latest project is Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, which will be released on The Roku Channel on Friday. The actor stars as Dr. Demento, who discovered “Weird Al” Yankovic and was his mentor. Daniel Radcliffe stars as Yankovic, while Evan Rachel Wood plays Madonna. The biopic started as a Funny or Die sketch in 2010, and even Wilson didn’t know how Yankovic and director Eric Appel could make a full-length movie.

“The script was so tight, and they had worked on it so carefully, the tone was just right,” Wilson told Collider. “It takes itself very, very seriously and that’s the kind of comedy I like where it’s the most absurd circumstances possible, but it’s taken deathly seriously, and there’s not any commenting on it, it’s not like, ‘Hey, we’re doing a goofy movie.’” After reading the script, Wilson instantly decided he wanted to be a part of the movie. He added that Yankovic is also a “hero of mine,” so he could not turn down a chance to play Dr. Demento.

Wilson starred as Dwight for all nine seasons of The Office, which is now streaming on Peacock. Wilson earned three Emmy nominations for the role. Wilson also stars in the AMC series Dark Winds and had a role in the Paramount+ movie Jerry and Marge Go Large.