Surprising reason why Jenna Fischer doesn’t act any more 13 years after The Office ended

Jenna Fischer is best known for playing the iconic role of Pam Beesly in nine seasons of The Office - but there's a reason she's not known for many more after.

Fischer, 52, went on to star in the comedy Splitting Up Together in 2018, five years after The Office ended. However, she later decided to quit TV for good - with her decision coming during the ABC show.

“It was during Splitting Up Together, which I really loved that cast so much but the hours were so intense. It was like 65 to 70 hours a week. It was really, really hard and my kids were really small,” she told the Dinner's On Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson podcast.

The sitcom, which starred Oliver Hudson and Lindsay Price, ran for two seasons, and Fischer decided that the ending of the show would also be the ending of her acting career.

Jenna Fischer started a podcast with her The Office co-star, Angela Kinsey in 2019 (Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

“I just decided after that that being like the lead of a television show or even a regular on a television show was not going to be a fit for me any more,” she said. This is when she started her own podcast, Office Ladies, alongside her former co-star Angela Kinsey.

She revealed that the venture offered her a lifestyle which had a steady income, as well as the freedom to be 'at every school drop off, every school pick-up, every teacher conference, every concert'.

“I didn't have to beg someone to go to the Halloween parade,” she added.

Fischer has been married to screenwriter and director Lee Kirk since July 2010, with the pair sharing two children together - Weston and Harper, who are 14 and 12 years old. Their young ages meant they were 'unaware' she had a role in the hugely popular sitcom.

And, unfortunately, it looks like they won't ever be able to see anything like it again, unless they watch the reruns, according to Rainn Wilson, who played the iconic Dwight Schrute.

“I do feel like you couldn't make The Office today,” he told Fox News Digital. “I do think that would be too hard to be as politically incorrect as the show was. I do kind of miss that.”

Fischer played Pam Beesly in the iconic sitcom (Byron Cohen/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)

Recently, Fischer sent a message of support to The Office UK star, Lucy Davis, after she announced she was living with incurable stage 4 breast cancer.

The 53-year-old announced on Instagram that she had been keeping the news private, and the cancer had spread to her bones.

In 2024, Fischer revealed that she had previously been diagnosed with stage 1 triple-positive breast cancer.

Fischer didn't make news about her health public, however, until she had undergone surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatment, later announcing she was cancer-free.

“Beautiful post. Love you lots,” she commented.

Davis also added in her Instagram post that she wanted to continue acting, with Fischer adding: “And yes to working with cancer! Let’s spread that message far and wide! How working is such a comfort.”