Threat Level Midnight

Synopsis

Michael Scott screens his action film Threat Level Midnight to the office after a decade of writing, shooting, re-shooting and editing. The film's characters are played by people who have either worked at the Dunder Mifflin Scranton branch in the past decade, or who Michael has interacted with in the last few years. The plot follows secret agent Michael Scarn (played by Michael), who is forced into retirement after his wife Catherine Zeta-Scarn is killed by Goldenface (played by Jim Halpert).

The President of the United States (played by Darryl Philbin) asks Scarn to stop Goldenface from blowing up the NHL All-Star Game. Scarn goes undercover, learns hockey, and kills another player (played by Oscar Martinez) to get into the game, but is shot after confronting Goldenface. He later learns the President was involved, and goes to a bar where patrons sing "The Scarn," a song he danced to with his wife. Restored, Scarn saves the day and blows up Goldenface.

Michael had shown a work-in-progress cut years ago, but the employees mistook it for a comedy, offending him. Now, everyone is eager to see the film because they appear in it. Pam warns everyone not to laugh, but she cries out when she sees her mother cast as a scantily clad nurse, and Jim laughs at "The Scarn," causing Michael to stop the movie. He asks Holly Flax what she thought; she is unimpressed, and Michael gets angry, calling the film his "dream."

He offers the office the chance to finish watching, and they accept. Michael steps outside, tells Holly the film is bad but people are enjoying it, and they sit down to laugh with the rest through the conclusion.

Production

The episode was written by executive producer B. J. Novak, who also portrays Ryan Howard on the show, and directed by Tucker Gates, his fourth directing credit for the series. Michael's screenplay was first mentioned in the second season episode "The Client" and later referenced in "Email Surveillance," "Product Recall," "Money," "Dinner Party," and "Prince Family Paper. The idea came from series star Steve Carell, who was leaving the show at the end of the season and wanted to center an episode on the script.

Several former recurring and minor characters reappear, including Rashida Jones as Karen Filippelli, who noted it felt like "a time warp. Melora Hardin returns as Jan Levinson in "Jan-as-diva mode" from "Sex Ed. Mike Bruner cameos as Tony Gardner, a pianist. Editor David Rogers objected that Tony would never return after being fired on his first day; Novak argued Tony might have been "intrigued" and "flattered" by Michael's apology, or "lonely.

Michael Scarn's deceased wife is heavily implied to be Catherine Zeta-Jones; Novak admitted no one asked her permission.

Cultural references

Clippings on the wall indicate Scarn previously saved the NFL, MLB, and NBA all-star games. Several Billy Joel songs play, including "Running on Ice" and "Pressure." A Dave Barry page-a-day calendar appears in a montage showing the passage of time.

Michael mentions both Oceans 11 and Antz in defense of his movie, the latter in a diatribe about Woody Allen and listening to fans. A deleted post-credits scene, present in the YouTube uncut release, features Michael Scarn and his robot butler breaking the fourth wall and telling the audience to "go home," referencing Ferris Bueller's Day Off. The character Cherokee Jack is a reference to the film Red Zone Cuba, known for being featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000.

Reception

In its original American broadcast on February 17, 2011, "Threat Level Midnight" was viewed by an estimated 6.41 million viewers and received a 3.3 rating/9 percent share among adults aged 18 to 49, a decrease from the previous episode. The full 25-minute film is available on the seventh season DVD and Blu-ray, and was released on iTunes on February 18, 2011. IGN's Cindy White awarded the episode a 9 out of 10, calling it "amazing" and praising Michael's self-awareness and Steve Carell's performance, saying it was good enough to be Carell's last episode.

Bonnie Stiernberg of Paste wrote that there wasn't a ton of action but it kept Michael's personal growth on radar. Dan Forcella of TV Fanatic gave five out of five stars, calling it one of "the best episodes in years" and praising its continuity and callbacks, noting the tension between Michael and Holly eased viewers toward Carell's departure. Alan Sepinwall described it as "goofy, silly, and about as nonsensical as the film itself," but a "fun, sweet tour through the history of the Michael Scott era."

Myles McNutt of The A.V. Club gave a "B," calling it "fan service" and a "mixed bag," noting clever scenes like Darryl's opinion on portraying a black president before Obama, but criticizing Michael's "juvenile" response to Holly and the unrealistic production values. Rick Porter of Zap2it gave a mixed review, saying it had fun moments but felt "a little bit clip-showy."

Did You Know?

• The episode was the highest-rated NBC series of the week it aired.
• The explosion of the Toby dummy head filled with fake blood was considered too disturbing and was replaced with a tamer version.
• The full 25-minute film was released on The Office's YouTube channel in December 2019.