SAM MENDES - MENDES TOLD KRASINSKI TO TURN DOWN THE OFFICE

MENDES TOLD KRASINSKI TO TURN DOWN THE OFFICE

SAM MENDES tried to convince JOHN KRASINSKI to turn down his role on the U.S. version of THE OFFICE - because he didn't think the actor could carry of comedy.
The filmmaker, who first met Krasinski while filming 2005's Jarhead, cast the actor as the lead in his upcoming movie Away We Go.
But when Mendes heard he was considering taking the part of Jim Halpert in the award-winning adaptation of the hit British series, he advised him not to take the part - as he wasn't convinced of the star's comedic talents.
He says, "I don't think of John as a comedian partly because he's really not funny at all! When I met John he was playing a small part in Jarhead and there weren't that many funny lines.
"When John told me (he) had been offered the U.S. remake of The Office I said, 'That's a disaster. That's a travesty,' and I told him not to do it, but I was completely wrong. At that time it was following an almost perfect piece of television which was the original U.K. series."