John Krasinski

“Growing up, I remember the 'Cheers' finale and 'M*A*S*H' and all these amazing finales, and I remember them being very, very important.”

“I was born in Newton, MA. Graduated from Brown University in 2001 with honors in English as a playwright. I attended the National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Center in Waterford, CT just after Brown. I moved to NYC in 2002 and was a professional... waiter, for 3 years.”

“I went to Dave Eggers with this idea of doing a movie about a guy going through some sort of Frank Capra-esque journey.”

“I remember when I saw 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,' I wanted to go out and direct a movie right there on the streets of Manhattan. Unfortunately, you can't without permits.”

“Most of the people I know who work out seriously do so because they have such an amazing outlook on life. To be who I want to be, I'm going to work out to be more positive, more active. It's proactive.”

“I don't go out - ever. I'm lucky enough to have awesome friends, and we always end up at someone's house. We're big house-party guys.”

“Probably the biggest challenge for me as a director was to not show how scared I was. I was surrounded by some of the most talented people in the industry, and I had to pretend I knew what I was doing.”

“I'm a huge classics fan. I love Ernest Hemingway and J.D. Salinger. I'm that guy who rereads a book before I read newer stuff, which is probably not all that progressive, and it's not really going to make me a better reader. I'm like, 'Oh, my God, you should read To Kill a Mockingbird.'”

“It's tough to live in New York and be in the business.”

“I was a waiter before 'The Office,' so to me, this was a winning lottery ticket. Everything about my life has changed.”

“A good part's a good part. You can play serious and funny moments with a well-written role.”

“'The Office' is not one of those things you move away from. I don't want it to go away.”

“My main focus is to always try to be myself first, and then, hey, if I wear a cool jacket, that's a bonus.”

“Hearing anyone think that I'm any form of sexy or handsome is incredibly flattering.”

“I credit NTI, truthfully, with everything as far as where my head is and what my goals are and dreams are. I would say it was probably one of the most influential moments of my life, being there.”

“I wanted to be an English teacher. I wanted to do it for the corduroy jackets with patches on the side. When I got to college, as I was walking across campus one day, I ripped off a little flyer for this sketch-comedy group. It ended up being one of the greatest things I've ever done.”

“I'm not looking to do 'Half Nelson' next, but to play anything that's a little more complex is really fun.”

“I had never taken acting at Brown to be the beginnings of a career. I always did it just for fun.”

“Luckily, I have two of the coolest parents around. They're so open about having any and all experiences, so they never hindered us in any way by categorizing or judging anything.”

“You can't do anything to be funny. That's cringeworthy. If your humor comes out of a place of love every time, you don't make the joke bigger than you. The funniest comedians are in touch with their emotional level.”