Rainn Wilson Has ‘The Office’ Jell-O Prank Pulled on Him by Hotel Staff

It’s the joke that started it all — and Rainn Wilson still can’t escape it nearly 20 years later.

In the pilot episode of The Office, which aired in 2005, Wilson’s character Dwight Schrute is pranked by his coworker Jim Halpert (John Krasinski), who encases his stapler in Jell-O. Dwight realizes the prank as their boss, Michael Scott (Steve Carell), is bringing a new temp employee, Ryan (B.J. Novak), around the office and introducing him. 

The Jell-O prank is one of Jim’s most beloved and reoccurs several times throughout the series. Wilson is not only haunted by it on television, but it also carries over into his real life, too.

On April 22, Wilson, 58, revealed that during a trip to Florence, Italy, he ordered room service and was surprised to find his knife and fork arrived encased in red Jell-O. “This is what happened when I ordered room service at my hotel in Florence… @plazahotellucchesi,” he captioned the photo, which showed his cutlery lying inaccessible next to his meal.

“Haha!!! That is so wonderful and funny! ❤ 😂,” Ed Helms, who starred as Andy Bernard, commented on the post. “I hope you left a giant tip (in jello!)!”

Kate Flannery, who played Meredith Palmer, shared some love, too, writing, “❤️❤️❤️❤️.”

In the scene, which kicks off a nine-season run of Jim pulling elaborate and hilarious pranks on Dwight on a near-daily basis, Dwight opens a drawer of his desk to find his stapler encased in yellow Jell-O.

“Dammit. Jim! He put my stuff in Jell-O again,” Dwight tells Michael, who’s standing beside his desk along with Ryan, the temp. “That’s real professional, thanks. This is the third time and it wasn’t funny the first two times either, Jim.”

“What is that?” Michael asks.

“It’s my stapler,” Dwight replies, before sticking his hand into the Jell-O to get it out.

“No, no, no, no, do not take it out. You have to eat it out of there,” Michael tells him, laughing. “Because there are starving people in the world — which I hate, and it is a waste of that kind of food.”

As Dwight insists that Jim is punished for the prank, Jim asks, feigning innocence while snacking on Jell-O, “How do you know it was me?” 

“Okay. Dwight, I’m sorry,” Jim says, giving in and apologizing before pivoting to make a joke, cracking Michael up again. “Because I have always been your biggest flan.”

The Office follows Wilson — and the whole cast — around in their daily lives, even now, nearly 20 years since it first premiered and 10 years after its finale, and Wilson often documents the reminders he gets on social media. 

On a flight in January, he was given a letter on a napkin while waiting at an airport to board a flight. In the note, which was signed by Alaska Airlines flight attendant Melanie, the fan said that the show “got me through some of the darkest days of my life.”

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Wilson responded, “So humbled to be part of a show that affected, touched, comforted and inspired. And continues to do so! It’s so f—ing rare. A continuous Thank you to the whole Office family, cast, writers, crew and especially AUDIENCE!”

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The Office can be streamed in full on Peacock.