James Spader is famous for playing many eccentric and charismatic characters on film and television, including an entitled jock in Pretty in Pink, a sex-crazed voyeur in Sex, Lies and Videotape, and a cut-throat attorney on the long-running legal drama Boston Legal.
But he can also play comedic characters. James Spader’s character on The Office is a man of many names: Bob Kazamakis, The Lizard King, and Robert California. So, who is this strange man that appears in seasons seven and eight of The Office?
Spader plays this character with a hilarious intensity while making absurd pronouncements like, “I’ve never believed willpower was very important in a woman.”
California is very opinionated, and somehow always succeeds despite all logic. His philosophy about whom he considers to be lesser office workers is cut-throat, as he states, “There’s something about the underdog that really inspires the unexceptional.”
Robert California comes in with a bang in the seventh season finale, an episode titled “Search Committee.” He is a candidate for the Scranton Branch Manager position, and his strangely intense personality upsets the hiring committee.
However, in a confessional interview that takes place afterward, Robert tells the documentary crew that he will definitely get the job. And he did!
Robert California’s confidence won him the position, as in the season eight premiere of The Office called “The List,” viewers learn that he was hired as the branch manager during the summer.
However, after a quick glance at the workplace in Scranton, California drives to Florida to convince the CEO to actually give him her job. And she did!
The CEO made California the new CEO. As CEO, California makes a list of all the employees in the Scranton office and splits them into columns of “Winners” and “Losers.” Next, he takes people he deemed to be the winners out for lunch.
After he is confronted about the demeaning list, California challenges the employees by saying, “Winners: prove me right; losers: prove me wrong.”
That episode shows California at his finest: his arrogance, his leadership skills, and the odd scenarios in which he gets away with outrageous behavior.
In the season eight episode called “Mrs. California,” Robert California’s wife is introduced when she visits the office seeking employment. Spader’s character pretends to help but does not actually want her to work there.
After she lands an accounting job at the office, Robert California does all he can to get her to quit, including making the staff treat her poorly.
The Lizard King outdoes himself in the season eight episode called “Turf War.”
After playing mind games with his wife all season, California gets a divorce and throws a party to celebrate. California gets drunk at the party and shuts down Dunder Mifflin’s Bingham location, causing the other office branches to fight over Bingham’s clients.
What a creator of chaos this man is!
But James Spader was not originally intended to be such a major character in the series. Originally hired to be a guest star in a one-off episode, producers of The Office had plans to either hire Catherine Tate or Will Arnett for bigger roles on the show.
When neither actor could take on the roles because of scheduling conflicts with other projects, and Spader became popular with viewers, he was asked to come back. Spader stated in an interview that, “… suddenly [the producers] called me back again and said, ‘We’d really like your character to come back in some capacity.'”
So, how did viewers react to this oddball character and James Spader’s portrayal of Robert California/ Bob Kazamakis/The Lizard King in The Office?
Well, critics loved it. One TV critic raved that, “James Spader killed as an overqualified candidate who was creepily perceptive.” More acclaim came from another critic, who wrote that he appreciated Spader’s “mildly sociopathic (but highly effective)” acting as Robert California.
Critics weren’t the only ones celebrating Spader’s portrayal of the intense CEO. His cast mates praised Spader’s acting work on the show, too.
Office actress Angela Kinsey sang Spader’s praises, saying that, “He is amazing. He crushed the table read. He brings such a cool, amazing intensity as Robert California that’s so different from Michael Scott. I just love him as this character.”
Steve Carell himself, who many associate the most with the series, said, “I think it’s an excellent choice. I think it’s great and he will infuse all this new energy into the show.”