The Office gave the fans some iconic characters, but it also featured some guest appearances and even recurring ones, which were utterly forgettable, by famous people no less. For instance, Hollywood legend Kathy Bates was part of the show but her role as the CEO is hardly ever talked about.
The show would often introduce characters without a specific purpose or intent, and without much of a character arc. So when a character would disappear suddenly, and quite a lot of them did, fans were left quite confused. Here are some of the most bafflingly forgettable characters on the show.
Dakota
Fifty Shades star Dakota Johnson had a rather bizarre stint on the show, especially since it wasn’t exactly a cameo, neither did her role get enough space or screen time to qualify as a recurring character. The actor stars as Dakota, an accountant who is hired to replace Kevin after Dwight fires him. But fans have often wondered the point of introducing her character because she didn’t have much to do on the show, and didn’t leave a mark. She is seen flirting with Clark in the finale and comes to Oscar with a question about Kevin’s notes, and that’s about it.
AJ
AJ was Holly’s boyfriend and they worked together in Dunder Mifflin Nashua. For obvious reasons, Michael was quite jealous of their relationship since he fancied Holly from day one.
He had even tried to make fun of AJ and humiliate him more than once. In season seven he even spills coffee on the Woody doll AJ had given Holly. But AJ’s character never found a strong enough arc on the show, and fans only know that his and Holly’s relationship was somewhat troubled because Holly was wary of waiting for AJ to propose.
Danny Cordray
It’s surprising that most fans of the show do not remember Santa Clarita Diet star Timothy Olyphant as Danny, the superstar traveling salesman of Osprey Paper, a rival of Dunder Mifflin. Turns out Danny had dated Pam once, very briefly which causes tensions between him and some of the workers after he is hired by Michael, especially after Pam reveals that he never called her back. Danny appeared in three episodes but fans never really got to learn about who he is as a person.
Charles Miner
It’s possible that The Office fans have had to block Charles Miner from their memories because it’s almost too surreal to think that the British heartthrob Idris Elba would actually play an executive of a Scranton paper company.
Miner is hired as Dunder Mifflin’s new Vice President for the Northeast region but does not get along well with Michael especially as he foils his fifteenth-anniversary party plans in an effort to cut expenditure. Although Elba was fantastic in his role as Miner, his character arc seems to be pretty shaky with quite a few inconsistencies.
Ronni
The Office introduced several characters without a specific purpose, and as a result, some characters seem to exist in The Office-verse without much to do. Take Ronni, for instance, who first appears in Season 5’s first episode as a replacement for Pam while she’s away at art school. But she seems pretty redundant because in the very same episode Michael decides that Ronni has a depressing personality and he wants Ryan back as a temp. Although Ronni makes another brief appearance in Season 6, her character seems to serve no purpose.
Jo Bennett
The iconic Kathy Bates played CEO of Sabre when the company was in the process of buying out Dunder Mifflin. Jo made for a strong boss and the people at the office liked her quite a lot although her appearances were quite sparse, and not as consistent as fans hoped it would be.
She makes some crucial changes in Dunder Mifflin and also hires Michael’s replacement. But Jo disappears quite suddenly as Robert California joins the company and tells everyone that he persuaded Jo to give him the title, which is quite inconsistent with her character.
Penny
True Blood and Pitch Perfect star Anna Camp also starred in The Office as Pam’s sister Penny. She only appears in one episode and fans have often wondered why she wasn’t a bigger part of Pam’s life, especially since Pam keeps in touch with her mum. Penny comes across as a good sister to Pam and helps her a lot on her wedding day, and she even catches Kevin’s eye as he asks Pam if Penny is single. Penny is also notable not as affected by their parents’ divorce as Pam.
Gabe
Gabe is introduced as Jo’s lackey but oddly enough he doesn’t seem to have a consistent character theme. He’s annoying and quite weird and doesn’t get along well with most people, but he also did share some nice moments with some people in the office.
However, his character seems to be pretty unnecessary, especially since his appearances were reduced gradually and eventually he disappeared from the show altogether. He is also oddly emotional at times, whereas at other times he is perfectly stoic.
Hunter
Jan’s younger office assistant Hunter makes Michael insanely jealous, and fans were hoping it would lead to some more hilarity, especially since Michael gets really nasty when he’s jealous. Hunter was seen on the show twice, although Jan did mention him once during the party in her home when she played his music and danced to it. It became obvious that the two shared some form of a romantic relationship, though it was never implied how serious they got. Nevertheless, fans believe that his character had some major potential as a recurring role.
Katy
The Office fans would agree that Amy Adams was criminally under-utilized on the show. The five-time Oscar nominee plays Katy, a handbag salesperson who sets up shop in Dunder Mifflin for a day. She is then shown dating Jim. But neither was her character given a significant niche or a purpose, and neither did her relationship with Jim actually make for a good plot device. This was baffling because she appeared in the first season in 2005, and by then she had already been part of some major films and shows, including the Leonardo Di Caprio-starring Catch Me If You Can, and her stint on The Office was so forgettable that some fans probably don’t even remember she ever made an appearance.