Be still our Dunder Mifflin hearts, here’s how Pam Beesly inspired John Krasinski while making A Quiet Place
We imagine that John Krasinski probably learned many things during his tenure on The Office, such as how to wrestle in a sumo suit, how to not burst out laughing next to Steve Carrell, and how to do an amazing Dwight Schrute impression. Have any of these things helped him with his blossoming writing and directing career? Probably not. But it turns out that Krasinski did learn one thing on The Office that has contributed to the success of his new hit movie, A Quiet Place, and it explains a lot.
During an interview with Mashable, Krasinski explains that, while on The Office, he learned that you can’t force the audience to feel something. You just have to tell a story honestly and sincerely and hope for the best…like say, when you’re trying to tell the love story between the receptionist and a paper salesman in Scranton, PA.
"It was actually something I learned on The Office — Greg Daniels, who created 'The Office' — I remember he said to me one day, he said, 'Your job is not to deliver these lines funny. Your job is just to deliver the lines and whether people find it funny is up to them and if people find it sad when you say nice things or cry when you say nice things to Pam, that's up to them, too," he explained Mashable.
Ah, yes, that makes sense! Now, the questions is, how can we stop crying every time you say something nice to Pam?
Krasinski continues:
"It sounds like such a simple thing, but I've really taken that for the rest of my career, so I thought I'll just apply it to this. I'm not making a scary movie. I'm just making a movie about a family, and if their circumstances scare you, then I've done my job right."
A Quiet Place currently holds a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and has pulled in over 67 million dollars, according to Box Office Mojo. So, it’s safe to say Krasinski has done his job right.
If you haven’t heard, A Quiet Place is a horror movie about a family who lives in fear of creatures who can hunt humans by sound. Subsequently, the family must live in complete silence and communicate with sign language. The family endures intense trauma at the hands of these monster-esque beings, which, combined with Krasinski’s excellent story-telling, makes for a nerve-shatteringly intense hour and a half.
Audiences (ahem, including us) have been terrified but loving it.
Went to see #AQuietPlace and now I have to sit on my couch for the next 48 hours and think
— gay rat chain smoking (@alexandrialayn3) April 11, 2018
#AQuietPlace … there are no words! @johnkrasinski & #EmilyBlunt – I’m still reeling! @quietplacemovie
— Ben Barnes (@benbarnes) April 12, 2018
#AQuietPlace was SO GOOD. i whisper screamed the whole time. 10/10 would whisper scream again.
— 🐿squirrel conscience embodied🐿 (@NiaLovelis) April 10, 2018
And it’s all thanks to The Office. Well, sort of. We just never want to stop talking about Dunder Mifflin obviously. At any rate, well done, John Krasinski! We can’t wait to see what you do next!
