Checking in with JENNA FISCHER
After her run in one of television’s most acclaimed series, Jenna Fischer knows certain expectations await her new show.
The former Pam of “The Office” (on which she also became a producer toward the end) resumes weekly work in the ABC sitcom “Splitting Up Together,” premiering Tuesday, March 27. From executive producers including Ellen DeGeneres and Emily Kapnek (“Suburgatory”), the show – inspired by a Danish series – casts Fischer and Oliver Hudson (“Rules of Engagement”) as a couple who stun their family by announcing their divorce, only to start reconsidering their decision afterward.
“I wanted to get some distance from ‘The Office’ before taking on another big job,” Fischer says, “and then, there was just something about this script that spoke to me. I really relate to the character. That’s kind of what I look for in a project, is do I see myself in this person that I have the possibility to play? I’m a wife and a mother now, and I feel like I’m going to get to express this whole other part of my personality, the part of my personality that likes to make lists and anticipate things a week in advance.”
Fischer previously was married to “Guardians of the Galaxy” writer-director James Gunn, and she reasons that while “Splitting Up Together” is “a show about two people who are divorced, I don’t think you have to be divorced or to have experienced divorce in order to relate to the show.”
Also the author of the recently published book “The Actor’s Life: A Survival Guide,” Fischer maintains that she felt comfortable with all of her “Splitting Up Together” co-stars – also including fellow series veterans Diane Farr (“Numb3rs”) and Lindsay Price (“Beverly Hills, 90210”) – from the start.
“Sometimes, you have to be like, ‘OK, let’s go to some dinners and some lunches and movies and become friends so that you’ll see it on-screen.’ That just wasn’t necessary. We had our first read-through of the script, then we all planned to go to lunch afterwards, and we were just (in sync) from the beginning.”
Birthdate: March 7, 1974 Birthplace: Fort Wayne, Ind. Current residence: Los Angeles Marital status: Married; has two children
Other television work includes: “The Office,” “The Guest Book,” “Drunk History,” “The Grinder,” “The Mysteries of Laura,” “You, Me and the Apocalypse,” “Newsreaders,” “Six Feet Under,” “That ’70s Show,” “Cold Case,” “Miss Match,” “What I Like About You,” “Undeclared,” “Spin City” Movie work includes: “The 15:17 to Paris,” “Brad’s Status,” “Kiss Me,” “Are You Here,” “Hall Pass,” “A Little Help,” “Solitary Man,” “The Promotion,” “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,” “The Brothers Solomon,” “Blades of Glory,” “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Lucky 13,” “Employee of the Month,” “Born Champion” On her “Splitting Up Together” character, divorcee Lena: “Through this exploration, she was able to finally say, ‘You know what? I am really trying to control every situation, and that’s not working in my whole life.’ ” On a potential of co-parenting: “Simply parenting with another person, or cohabiting with another person, leads to differences in how you think that moment should be parented.” On possibly returning for a proposed revival of “The Office”: “I think that’s for networks to figure out, if I were to be asked, but I haven’t been approached about it. I don’t know anything about it.”