John Krasinski Was 'Terrified' Directing His First Episode of 'The Office'

Although "The Office" wrapped up years ago, several of its stars still have promising careers. John Krasinski, who played Jim Halpert, had a terrific run with the popular workplace comedy. Since leaving the series, the 42-year-old has starred in several popular TV shows and movies.

In addition to acting, Krasinski also broadened his off-camera skill as a filmmaker, writer, and producer. His official directorial debut was an episode on "The Office." The actor reportedly directed episode 15 of season six of the show, titled "Sabre."

Krasinski joined his former co-stars from "The Office" in a podcast and admitted how "terrified" and "nervous" he was during the entire thing because he didn't want to order anyone around. A fear that ended up being unfounded because he didn't need to, and everything moved seamlessly.

In a recent "Office Ladies" podcast appearance, Krasinski revealed that he was initially terrified of his role as the "The Office" episode director. The podcast saw the actor and his former co-stars, Angela Kinsey and Jenna Fischer, talk about his "Sabre" episode.

Krasinski admitted that while directing the episode of the show was a "dream," he was also "terrified" and "really really nervous" before he undertook the task. Via Mashable, he said, "It was like a dream. It was absolutely everything you would wish directing a show like this would be."

"I personally was terrified because I had to direct all of you," the "The Quiet Place" actor continued. "I remember being really, really nervous about that —that you were my coworkers, but you were my closest friends. You were my family. And here I was thinking I had the audacity to tell you what to do."

The actor revealed that ordering the other co-stars about wasn't necessary because "everyone was just so good at what they did." He admitted that he spent most of his time "sitting back and watching" how every cast member brought "magic" to each moment.

"Sabre" was the 115th episode of "The Office" and was reportedly written by Jen Celotta. The episode showed Steve Carell as Michael Scott and his fight with Kathy Bates as Jo Bennett. She was the CEO of Sabre, the new printer company that took control of Dunder Mifflin.

While "Sabre" is seen as Krasinski's directional debut, the actor had prior experience in the directing department. Fischer revealed that the 42-year-old wrote, directed, and produced a film titled "Brief Interviews with Hideous Men" in 2009.

She said, "He had written, produced and directed the film 'Brief Interviews with Hideous Men,' based on the short story collection by David Foster Wallace [2009]. I remember this from the time we did the pilot. John loved this book, and I guess he purchased the rights to the book with his first paycheck from 'The Office.' He had always wanted to adapt it."

During the podcast, Fischer and Kinsey mentioned that while "Sabre" may seem like the normal "The Office" episode, it was a big task, especially as a directional debut. The episode reportedly introduced several new characters, including two new regulars. It was also supposed to effectively tackle the chaos of Sabre buying out Dunder Mifflin.

Recalling the time, Fischer said, "We need to point out what a very big deal it was for John to direct this particular episode because he had to establish two new major characters in the show: Kathy Bates as Jo Bennett and Zach Woods as Gabe Lewis. And he directed Christian Slater. So this was not just a regular episode of 'The Office.'"

Kinsey added, "It was a big episode to make your directional 'Office' debut. My lord." The 42-year-old apparently felt the same way. He even said he felt "apologetic" to Bates because he was her first experience with a director on the show.

While Krasinski said he didn't have to do much while directing, Kinsey referred to him as a "natural" in the field. "Sabre" was well received by critics and the audience, and the "Free Guy" actor directed two more episodes of the workplace comedy. One in season eight and the other in season nine.

The actor went on to star and direct in several other movies. Still, he revealed that he owed his current success to "The Office" and the chance to direct an episode of the beloved series. He said, "This show was my film school. I mean, I was a waiter before I got the show. I had zero experience in this business in anything— acting, writing, directing, producing, any of that stuff."

Krasinski added that he felt lucky when he was dropped into "the most immense pool of talent that I could ever ask for." The director concluded, "So I guess what I'm trying to say is, I owe absolutely everything to this show. Directing this episode was so very special, and I will truly never forget it."