Summary

• Dakota Johnson had a small but significant role in The Office finale, playing an accountant who replaced Kevin Malone.
• Despite her limited screen time, Johnson's cameo could have changed the course of her career if her character had been further developed.
• The Office had plans to spin off Johnson's character into a new series, but it never materialized. Johnson herself expressed that it wouldn't have worked creatively for her.

Before becoming a film star, actress Dakota Johnson made an oft-forgotten cameo in the finale episode of The Office. The last episode of The Office season 9 featured a much larger cast than usual, as the series had to say goodbye to the beloved original characters while also shuffling in a new generation of Dunder Mifflin employees to replace them. Along with Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, and a return cameo of Steve Carell as Michael Scott, The Office’s finale briefly featured Dakota Johnson as a character that nearly changed the course of her career.

The Office notably had a rule about its cameos in that they refused to engage in stunt casting, which is why the appearances by Jack Black, Cloris Leachman, and Jessica Alba in season 5 were cleverly inserted as part of a fictional movie rather than interacting with the characters. However, The Office later saw actors like Kathy Bates, Idris Elba, James Spader, Stephen Colbert, and even Will Ferrell fill notable roles. While this was a result of needing big names following Steve Carell’s exit after The Office season 7, later seasons included cameos by up-and-coming actors, such as Dakota Johnson.

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Dakota Johnson's The Office Role

Dakota Replaces Kevin Malone As One Of Dunder Mifflin's Accountants

Dakota Johnson appears in The Office’s finale episode as Dakota, which aptly continues the show’s trend of using many of the actors’ real names for their characters. Dakota joins Dunder Mifflin as a new accountant in the timeline after the documentary has aired, as the company needed to fill in for the many Scranton branch employees who were fired or resigned. Dakota Johnson’s The Office character specifically replaced Kevin Malone, who was fired by Dwight, with her cameo likely being used as a juxtaposition with the employee who formerly held her title.

However, Dakota Johnson only appears in two scenes of The Office’s finale, which feature her asking Oscar about strange marks on Kevin’s old files and Clark flirting with her at the PBS afterparty. With such little screen time in an episode far more concerned about The Office's original character endings, it’s not surprising that Johnson’s cameo is often forgotten. Additionally, Dakota Johnson wasn’t the big name she is today when appearing on The Office, as the episode aired two years before her breakout role in Fifty Shades of Grey.

While Dakota Johnson has led the blockbuster Fifty Shades franchise and plays a superhero in Madame Web, she was still up-and-coming a decade ago. Before The Office, Johnson had small roles in The Social Network, 21 Jump Street, and The Five-Year Engagement, with her TV series Ben and Kate having been canceled shortly before her cameo bit. As such, The Office was still a relatively significant role for Johnson and could have changed the course of her career had the original true plans for her character come to fruition.

Dakota Johnson's Office Cameo Was Meant To Set Up A Spinoff

The Spinoff Is One Of Many That Never Materialized

In a 2021 interview, Johnson revealed that the true circumstances of her cameo were meant to set up a future The Office spinoff, which would have followed her and a new generation of employees at Dunder Mifflin (via THR). In the subtle moments of The Office’s finale at Dunder Mifflin, it’s clear how the groundwork for a future series had been laid out, as the ending featured a relative overhaul of the senior employees with a younger crowd.

“If everything else just falls away, maybe you’ll find me in that Office spinoff that no one wants to watch. I don’t know in what world that would’ve worked for me creatively. I have found that when something is successful, even when there’s nothing left, they just keep trying to wring out the towel of story. Sometimes things need to end when they’re supposed to end.”

Along with Clark and Pete staying at Dunder Mifflin, The Office’s ending saw Johnson's and Malcolm Barrett’s self-named characters revitalizing the workplace. However, her The Office spinoff never panned out, with Johnson also mentioning it wouldn’t have worked out for her “creatively” anyway. Had Dakota Johnson’s The Office cameo turned into a full toplining role, she may never have become the movie star she is today.

Dakota Johnson Didn't Enjoy Filming For The Office

Johnson Recalled The Weird Dynamics Between The Office Cast

Dakota Johnson's brief stint on The Office may have seemed like a dream opportunity for the actress, yet her experience was far from what she had anticipated. During an appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers, Johnson revealed that her time filming the 2013 series finale was, paradoxically, the worst time of her life. Despite her longstanding admiration for the Greg Daniels-created series, which boasted a stellar cast including Steve Carrell, Rainn Wilson, and John Krasinski among others, Johnson's excitement quickly dwindled upon realizing the extent of her involvement.

Johnson, who eagerly accepted the offer to be part of the iconic show's concluding episode, was under the impression that her participation would be brief. However, Johnson ended up spending two weeks on set, only to find herself relegated to the background, commenting:

I love that show so much and they were like, 'Do you want to be in the series finale?' And I was like, 'Of course!' thinking I'd show up for, like, half a day. I was there for two weeks and I'm barely in the f**king show. I was in the background with all of these scenes faxing things.

Compounding her disappointment was the lackluster reception from the cast, which, according to Johnson, failed to extend a warm welcome to her. The actress candidly shared her observations of the somber atmosphere and complex interpersonal dynamics that pervaded the set, remnants of a decade's worth of relationships among the cast members. The actress commented:

They were sad, and there were also weird dynamics that were going on for the last 10 years. Some people didn't speak to each other and I'm coming in like, 'Hahaha, I'm so excited to be here!' And nobody wanted to talk to me, nobody gave a f**k.

Her enthusiasm to be part of a show she so deeply cherished was met with indifference, highlighting an uncomfortable juxtaposition between her expectations and the reality of her experience. Johnson's candid recounting of her time on The Office underscores not only her disillusionment but also sheds light on the challenges of integrating into a well-established ensemble that was navigating its own intricate web of emotions and relationships as the series drew to a close.