The Hardest John Krasinski Ever Laughed During The Office Was In A Famous Christmas Episode
Longtime fans of the beloved mockumentary series "The Office" will know that John Krasinski has a reputation for breaking character — so much so that his breaks sometimes even made it into the episode. Krasinski, who plays salesmen Jim Halpert, is a mainstay of the blooper reel for each season of "The Office," most often bursting out into laughter whenever he's acting opposite co-stars Rainn Wilson (Dwight Schrute) and Steve Carrell (Michael Scott).
According to fellow cast member Angela Kinsey, one particularly hilarious scene from the Season 5 episode, "Lecture Circuit: Part 1" actually sent both Krasinski and Wilson into such an absurd fit of laughter that they had to stop filming. Considering the fact that "The Office" is still considered one of the funniest sitcoms in TV history, it's no wonder that Krasinski had a hard time keeping a straight face behind the scenes.
In fact, Krasinski himself has revealed that one scene from a famous Christmas episode actually left him laughing so hard he ended up on the floor so the crew actually couldn't cut to him for a reaction shot.
Krasinski broke character so hard they had to cut Jim from the scene entirely
During an interview with WIRED, in which Krasinski and his "Jack Ryan" co-star Michael Kelly answered the web's most searched questions about themselves, the actor claimed that he laughed so hard during the Season 6 episode, "Secret Santa," that he asked not to be filmed or risk ruining the scene.
"The hardest I've ever laughed in my life is the Christmas episode where Steve [Carell] pretends to be Santa and asks Brian Baumgartner, who played Kevin, to sit on his lap," Krasinski explained. "And as soon as Steve said, 'What would you like little boy?' and he lost all the air in his body when Brian sat on him, I've never laughed harder in my life." Krasinski went on to say that he told the cameraman not to pan to him for a reaction shot, saying: "'I will not be here. I'm not professional. I'll be on the floor laughing my a** off.' And we did."
Sure enough, the final scene does not include any reaction shots of Krasinski, though you can still see Ed Helms and Mindy Kaling breaking character in the background. Although there are certainly plenty of moments throughout the series where Krasisnki breaks character, it's clear that this one still holds a special place in his heart as he broke so hard they literally had to remove his character from the scene.