Photography by Larsen&Talbert
She starred in the classic slasher flick Man Under the Stairs, the tale of a trollish creep bent on murdering any girl bold enough to climb past his lair. Despite questionable costuming, Ellie Kemper’s terrified shrieks—as the killer drove his knife into her chest—were reminiscent of Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween. Surely, the young actress would have won countless awards…if only Oscars were given to home movies made by preteens. From that auspicious beginning in Ladue, Kemper went on to study under ninth-grade teacher Jon Hamm at John Burroughs School, play field hockey at Princeton University, and land a role on The Office. Her Erin Hannon answered the phones and brought naive optimism to Dunder Mifflin. She cracked us up in Bridesmaids (“You smell like pine needles, and have a face like sunshine!”), and she taught chemistry to Channing Tatum in 21 Jump Street (“You’re like two Hardy Boys in one!”). This summer, she appears in Sex Tape (that’s the name of the movie; it isn’t actually a sex tape). And in the upcoming NBC comedy Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, created by Tina Fey, Kemper plays the title escapee from a cult, learning life in the real world. Even more impressive, she can do the running man in heels.
This sounds creepy, but I’m obsessed with your dancing. I wouldn’t say you’re a good dancer, but you have passion. You’re accurate in all of those assessments. I am not a particularly skilled dancer, but my enthusiasm makes up for that. Actually, the first time I was really dancing on-screen was in Café Disco in The Office. That was with Mindy [Kaling]. We both like head down to Cafe Disco just to blow off some steam and dance.
And you’ve been breaking it down ever since. I sometimes think maybe I dance too much. But Ellen is a show that embraces dancing. I feel like that’s OK. I’ll dance it up there. I only took ballet for about three years. There isn’t necessarily any talent involved with my dance.
You hosted The Ellen DeGeneres Show, unusual for someone not named Ellen DeGeneres. That was one of the best days of my life. It happened so quickly. The producers called at about 11 o’clock that morning: “The show tapes at 3. Can you come in?”
Did you think it was a joke? I did think it was a prank, because Ellen does that sort of thing on her show. She’s always surprising and pranking people. But then I got to the Warner Bros. lot, and I saw her, and absolutely, she was sick. It was so cool. I was actually not as nervous as I thought I would be, because the audience is on your side. They are there to have a good time. Plus, I got a free pass because everyone knew I was just a sub. It was like we were all kind of winging it. What a thrill, my gosh.
You got to interview Neil Patrick Harris. I did! A lifelong dream. Thank goodness it was a smart, professional actor who didn’t need any help from me.
When you were growing up, you wanted to be a nun. That was purely based on The Sound of Music, which was my favorite movie. To me, being a nun was very glamorous. It didn’t have to do necessarily with the religious component. That was the height of glamour.
You had a temper. I am a redhead. I feel like we are naturally sort of temperamental beings. I mean, we’re hotheads. That’s what I’ve been told. But in my old age, I’ve settled to a very serene state.
Did you ever hurt anyone? I broke someone’s nose while playing field hockey, but that was an accident. That was not based on having a temper. She was in the way, so the ball broke her nose.
It was the ball’s fault. Well, Bill, I blame the ball.
I hear you’re a Seinfeld fan. Seinfeld is the only show we watched as a family growing up. It’s a little surprising to me, because Seinfeld has endured so well over the years, but there are some racy storylines in there. My parents, they’re not strict, but they’re wholesome people. Homework would stop, whatever you were doing. We would gather and watch Seinfeld.
What’s your favorite episode? Probably my favorite episode of all time is the airplane episode, when Jerry is in first class and Elaine is in coach, and George and Kramer are going to pick them up from the airport that keeps shifting as the flight changes. I think that flight originated in St. Louis, because there is a shot of Lambert Field at the very beginning.
Do you feel pressure to be a St. Louis booster? I don’t feel pressure, because I naturally am very proud of my St. Louis heritage. There are a bunch of St. Louisans in Los Angeles working in show business. Certainly on The Office, there were a bunch of actors—Jenna Fischer, Phyllis Smith—who are from St. Louis. Jon Hamm is an unabashed cheerleader for St. Louis. He does so much for our old high school. He’s such a sports fan.
What did Hamm teach you? He taught the improv portion of my class. He laid out the basic tenets of improvisation comedy, which might be kind of boring, but just saying “yes and,” and agreeing with your scene partner and upping the stakes. He’s a good man.
Which of you is a bigger deal at Burroughs? There is no argument that the bigger deal is Jon Hamm. I think if you hold him up to anyone, he would win that contest. He’s like St. Louis’ son. We produced this man, or something, for the rest of the world to enjoy.
Did you have any part-time jobs here? I worked at the St. Louis Frozen Custard Factory, just one summer.
Is there a rivalry with Ted Drewes? I shouldn’t even utter the words, because I don’t want to stir any controversy. Let’s just say, there’s only one Ted Drewes. This other one, it’s in second.
Early on, you had a job chauffeuring a boy who was acting in an M. Night Shyamalan film. I had an acquaintance in New York, and she had an 8-year-old. I drove him to the set of The Village, which was right outside of Philadelphia. I would start in New York, where I lived, and then I would take the bus to New Jersey like at 4:30 in the morning, and take the family’s car to drive their son to the set. It was advertised to me as an opportunity to make connections with other actors and maybe meet the director.
That makes zero sense. Once you’re on a movie set, you quickly realize how, like, minute the chances are of that actually happening. Because you just sit there, and you wait the whole time, and you don’t make any networking connections. You just eat the muffins or whatever. I just remember it raining a lot.
In preparing for this interview, I watched you on a lot of late-night talk shows. I apologize for you, because that is your misfortune. I’m sorry.
You seemed nervous, which I found endearing. I would say Letterman without a doubt was the most nerve-racking, because he is a hero of mine. There is no one like him. I haven’t been watching his show lately, because I’m too sad that it’s going to end. It’s a denial thing. I was only on the show for about five minutes, but I will remember it for the rest of my life. He’s a living legend.
Conan O’Brien helped launch your career. I was an older intern. I was like 25. Then I got to go back to do bits on the show there. Those were some really big breaks for me. I met my husband [writer Michael Koman] there, which is the biggest break of all.
You publicly asked Dolly Parton to sing at your wedding. Did she? No. I kept thinking in the back of my head, “Maybe she’s going to surprise me, since I put it out there.” Talk about denial. I was like, “Maybe she’s just going to stop by.” No, she didn’t. She didn’t stop by.
Maybe she’ll come to an anniversary party. I think you’re exactly right. I’ll be more mature. I’ll be more direct, and I’ll reach out to Dolly directly.
Do you have a favorite co-star? Wow. All of the people who I’ve worked with are smart and gracious, and they don’t pop into my head when I think showbiz. They seem like normal people. I love everyone on the cast of The Office. I walked onto that show really late in their run. They had already been on it for five years. Everyone was warm. Kate Flannery, I remember she was the first person who greeted me that day, and she could not have been kinder. Paul Lieberstein, who played Toby, he’s wonderful. Don’t make me choose!
It’s been more than a year since The Office finale. Have you put it into perspective? You do realize how rare an experience that is. I don’t think there are television shows like that anymore. It really was a feeling show. There was a heart to it. I think that’s why people responded to it, because it was so relatable. Everyone had real-life friends or co-workers like the people portrayed in The Office. There was a lot of hope in that show. To be involved with that many talented people in one room is very rare.
Do you have a favorite moment from The Office? It was on a bus. It was an episode called “Work Bus,” but we nicknamed it Death Bus. People were getting injured. It was just the bus was a Death Bus. Things were going so wrong, but it was making me laugh so hard I wet my pants.
Figuratively? No, no, no. I am not a stranger to wetting my pants. I did literally pee in my pants from laughing too hard. Whenever that happens, it’s such a mix of emotion. I’m horrified, because I’ve just urinated in my pants, but I’m also so grateful that I am able to have an experience of such pure joy that I literally wet myself. In those close quarters, there was no hiding it. So I just sort of announced to everyone, “You guys, I have laughed so hard that I have unfortunately wet my pants.” They accepted me for who I was. That was a nice moment.
Your next project is Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. We shot the pilot in New York. That was a lot of talented people in one room, too. That was Tina Fey and Robert Carlock. They wrote this incredible script, and it’s so funny.
The idea is that you escape from a cult. I come out from a doomsday cult and start life over again. What’s really cool about her rebirth in New York is, she thinks everything’s awesome that you or I might take for granted, like riding the subway, like the rats in the street. Everything is awesome. She is very excited to have this new lease on life.
Your characters all seem to have a certain innocent quality. Yes. I haven’t played any murderers yet. It’s kind of a naive, optimistic sort of person. What I love about this person in the Tina Fey pilot is, she is a little tough. She’s a little bit rough around the edges. There is a tenacity to her that is fun to play.
How do you feel about being the main character? I wasn’t used to being in every scene. That was nothing but cool. I’m like, “Yeah, more camera time!” It was so much good, hard work. It’s so satisfying. I think it’s just such a good idea for a lead character, so I’m really lucky.
You’re in Sex Tape with Cameron Diaz. In my opinion, she is totally underrated. She is so funny! I have a longtime girl crush on her. I won’t lie to you. I watched a couple of Cameron Diaz movies before going back to film Sex Tape, just to get in the zone. I was rewatching There’s Something About Mary, and she is just really funny. She just is. To say she has a knack for it is an understatement obviously. She is a worldwide movie star. But she can play both serious and comedic equally well.
Why is it never raining on the red carpet? Ugh, because Los Angeles is such a weird city with oppressive sunshine. That’s how I think of it. It’s not normal to not have seasons. I don’t think I’ve been to a red carpet where it’s rained. I can only remember one time. It was the Golden Globes. I wasn’t there; I was watching it. Everyone had umbrellas. That was the only one. It’s eerie. Don’t you think it’s eerie how there has never been rain on any red carpet?
I was imagining actors panicking and trying to keep their suits dry. A unique form of torture.
You make gooey butter cake. Is it good? I have gotten much better at it. Basically, Jenna Fischer and Phyllis and Rusty Mahmood, who was our assistant director on The Office, had a gooey butter contest. Jenna won. And I think Phyllis came in second. Rusty and I tied for third. But it’s not about how you finish. I continue to make gooey butter. My neighbors actually really like it. It’s hard to mess gooey butter up, though.
Do you still hang out with people from The Office? I don’t see them as much, which is too bad. You go to work every day, and you’re used to seeing them. Then suddenly, you just don’t see people as much, because you’re not in The Office, which is a bummer.
You’ve contributed to McSweeney’s and The Onion. Are you still writing? I want to write a book of essays. I’m actually working on that, to be determined.
Essays about what? A mix of personal and fiction, just loosely. As far as a screenplay, I haven’t really tried getting into that yet. I think at some point that is a goal of mine.
You did a TEDx talk here in St. Louis. TED scares me. I was intimidated. I figured, what is something I might know about that other people might not have the same experience with? I thought about Bridesmaids. A lot of the response to that movie was, “See, women can be funny.” That movie didn’t prove that women are funny. It proved that male moviegoers will buy tickets to go see that movie. Therefore, studios can make big comedies with very funny, eccentric female characters at the center, and they will still sell tickets. That was what was revolutionary about that movie. Not that women are funny. They’ve always been funny.
How do you feel about watching yourself on-screen? It’s a horrible experience. I don’t know if you like listening to the sound of your voice on the answering machine. I would watch The Office because I like that show. But it’s so weird watching yourself. It just feels inherently kind of gross. You’re like, “That’s what I look like?”
How famous are you, on a scale of one to “I can’t go to the grocery store without being mobbed”? Oh my gosh, I do not get mobbed. It’s very easy. I don’t think I will ever get to that level. To not be able to go to Marshalls or T.J.Maxx without being recognized would be an unfortunate thing.
Maybe this sounds vain, but if you're Brad Pitt, you have to look good to run errands. Of course! That would be the worst of it.
You really don’t get recognized? I get recognized, but nothing severe. What’s really nice is that people love The Office, so the fans are really gracious, kind people. After Sex Tape, they might be a little more aggressive.
