Kathy Bates 'kept getting tripped up' improvising on “The Office”: 'Don't know if I ever really succeeded'

Kathy Bates is an accomplished actress with two Emmys and an Oscar, but she still had a tough time riffing at Dunder Mifflin.

The Matlock and Misery star reflected on her guest stint on The Office during a recent appearance on the Office Ladies podcast, hosted by Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey.

"Steve Carell, I couldn't get over what a fantastic actor and improvisationalist he is," Bates said of the show's comedic anchor. "So for me, it was great to be around people like him and John [Krasinski] and a whole bunch of the guys and gals. It's just to try and learn from them how they do what they do, because it's invisible."

Bates portrayed Jo Bennett, an eccentric executive with two comically oversize dogs, in eight episodes in seasons 6 and 7 of the sitcom. The actress explained that although her time on The Office was "a lot of fun," she struggled with the show's off-the-cuff approach.

"I did have a problem transitioning from lines that were written and then the improvisation that we were allowed to do," she said. "I don't know if I ever really succeeded. I kept getting tripped up on that. But it was a wonderful experience."

Related: Kathy Bates gets emotional after learning she actually did thank her mother after winning her Oscar

Bates also revealed that she was floated as a potential replacement for Carell after he began the process of leaving the series in season 7. "I know toward the end, since Steve was leaving, they were interested in me possibly staying on," she explained. However, she was busy with a different NBC show that ultimately only ran for two seasons.

Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.

"I had gone on to do Harry's Law. But, you know, I don't want to cast aspersions on anybody. But I think it would have been fun to stay on The Office," she said, laughing at the missed opportunity, "and really developed that character more." (James Spader's Robert California ultimately succeeded Carell as top dog.)

Related: Kathy Bates breaks down that massive Matlock premiere twist

Bates also recounted how she developed Jo's unfashionable wardrobe. "I had this fur coat that I had found that was kind of strips of fur that was really kind of low-class," she said. "But I insisted on wearing that, that it's just so inappropriate. And I think, yes, we worked on the hair and the look for her."

Bates and the costuming department wanted Jo to seem like she hadn't updated her wardrobe since her youth. "It's what they say: When you figure out what style looks good on you, you stay with it, regardless of your age or anything in fashion," she said. She explained how she envisioned Jo as a reckless leader as well: "I felt she had a lot of swagger and that she was probably a bull in a china shop — that's how she ran her company, just sort of steamrolling over everybody and with her money. And I loved the Great Danes. I really did. They were great."

Listen to the full conversation between Bates, Fischer, and Kinsey above.

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly