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Pam Beesly does more than answer phones at Dunder Mifflin. In fact, the DC Universe wouldn’t look the same without her.

When a Hollywood couple splits up, they typically release a press statement saying that they’ll always be good friends. It’s usually just PR talk. However, Jenna Fischer and James Gunn defied showbiz norms by doing something most divorced couples never do – they actually remained friends. In fact, not only is Jenna Fischer responsible for one of Gunn’s earliest superhero movies getting made, but she’s also influenced some of the casting decisions for the new DC Universe.

The ballad of Jenna and James

Before Jenna Fischer hit it big on The Office, and before James Gunn became one of the biggest filmmakers in the superhero genre, the two were another Hollywood couple trying to make it in the entertainment industry. Gunn and Fischer, who both grew up in St. Louis, married in 2000. The two met each other through James’s younger brother, Sean Gunn, one of Jenna’s longtime friends.

During the early days of their marriage Gunn wrote the scripts for projects such as Scooby-Doo and Dawn of the Dead while Fischer was appearing in bit roles on sitcoms such as Spin City, That ‘70s Show, and What I Like About You. Fischer appears in one scene of The Specials, James Gunn’s first superhero screenplay. This means that in some way, she’s been a part of Gunn’s superhero film journey from the beginning.

The two of them also made a movie together called LolliLove. Fischer wrote and directed the film, which stars fictional versions of herself and Gunn. The caricatures of Jenna and James are presented as a shallow Hollywood couple launching an initiative to give homeless people lollipops with wrappers that include uplifting comics created by James. The film is done mockumentary style, and it feels like the experience helped prepare Fischer for her role in The Office.

In fact, Fischer’s role in The Office would have an interesting influence on Gunn’s superhero films. When Fischer landed her job on the NBC comedy, Gunn spent a lot of time around her co-stars, the writers, and producers. When showrunner Greg Daniels was cutting the show’s pilot, he tried six versions of the opening theme, and Gunn’s favorite was ELO’s 'Mr. Blue Sky.' Daniels told Gunn it was too expensive to use, but Gunn always thought it would make a good opening theme. Years later, Gunn would say Baby Groot dancing to Mr. Blue Sky in the opening of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was inspired by his favorite cut of The Office pilot.

What does a successful divorce look like?

In 2007 Jenna Fischer and James Gunn announced they were separating. The announcement was posted on their MySpace blogs, which was pretty on brand for 2007.

"The enthusiasm we have expressed for each other's lives, spirits, and careers is real -- we have been each other's cheerleader and friend during the past six years and continue to be so now and in the future,” the couple said in a joint statement.

Gunn and Fischer remained true to their word, becoming as one entertainment website put it, “the cutest divorced couple ever.” Gunn and Fischer are complimentary about one another in press interviews, and have used their social media feeds to promote one another’s projects. When Fischer produced and starred in The Giant Mechanical Man (directed by her current husband Lee Kirk), Gunn encouraged his social media followers to see the movie. Likewise, Fischer tweeted her excitement for the release of Guardians of the Galaxy.

When they’re not promoting one another’s projects, they share friendly messages about their hometown pizza, send one another gifts, and share inside jokes. Today, Fischer is married to writer and director Lee Kirk (a longtime friend of the Gunn family) and Gunn is married to actress Jennifer Holland. Fischer and Gunn continue to socialize, and have even been photographed having a family dinner together along with their new spouses.

“We’re legitimate friends,” Fischer says during a 2019 appearance on Michael Rosenbaum’s Inside of You podcast. “When we decided to get divorced, [James] said, ‘You know, we’re not going to be able to call the marriage a success because we’re not staying married, but let’s have the most successful divorce. How can we have the most successful divorce? What does a successful divorce look like?’ And it was an actual conversation that we had.”

Not only is Fischer not bitter about the divorce, but she believes the marriage was a success in its own way. “I would say that the marriage was a success because there were so many things I learned about myself through that relationship. I think that relationship was totally necessary for me. I grew so much as a person, I think he would say he did too. And I’m so grateful for that time.”

How Jenna Fischer helped James Gunn put together his DC Universe (and other superhero films)

If it wasn’t for Jenna Fischer, James Gunn never would’ve directed his first superhero film.

Although The Specials was Gunn’s first superhero screenplay, the 2000 film was directed by Craig Mazin. Gunn wouldn’t direct a superhero movie until the 2010 film Super. However, Gunn had given up on getting that project off the ground until he received a call from his ex-wife.

“My ex-wife, Jenna Fischer, called up and she said, ‘What are you doing with Super? That's my favorite script you've written, I really want to see you make that movie,’” Gunn says during a 2011 ScreenAnarchy interview. “I said, [that I didn't] know--the movie's very dark, it's esoteric, it's not the most commercial move for me to make for my career--I really do love it, but I'm just not sure it's the right thing to do. And she said, ‘Well listen: have you ever thought of Rainn [Wilson] as Frank?’ Now, as soon as she said it--I've known Rainn for five years, we were friends--it seemed like it was perfect. He was all of those things that I had been looking for.”

Wilson is famously known for playing Dwight Schrute on The Office, which was still running at the time. Fischer helped her co-worker and ex-husband get in touch, and Super was rescued from development hell. When the film was released in 2010, Fischer received a special thanks in the movie’s end credits. That wouldn’t be the last time Fischer would help Gunn cast someone for a superhero movie, or the last time Gunn would hire one of Fischer’s Office co-stars.

When Gunn was putting together his first DC Comics film, The Suicide Squad, he consulted with Fischer before making his final casting decision on Bloodsport. Gunn was eyeing Idris Elba for the role but wanted to make sure there were no surprises. According to a 2021 Associated Press interview, Gunn called up Fischer to ask about her experience working with Elba, who had been on The Office for an extended storyline in season five. Fischer told Gunn that Elba was lovely to work with, and the actor was hired.

If you watched Peacemaker season two, then you probably noticed another Office actor in the cast. Keith Smith, Peacemaker’s brother on an alternate Earth, was played by David Denman, the actor who played Pam Beesly’s fiancé Roy. Many people noted the meta irony. “Casting your ex-wife’s ex TV boyfriend is insane trolling,” one user jokes in a viral X message. However, the truth is more heartwarming.

Denman previously worked with Gunn on the 2019 film Brightburn, but they first became friends during the early days of The Office. In fact, it was Gunn’s current wife Jennifer Holland who brought up the meta irony during an episode of Peacemaker: The Official Podcast.

“David Denman plays your ex-wife’s fiancé on The Office. That’s how you originally met him, right,” Holland asks. “Yeah, I met him through that, and we were friends. I was friends with him for a long time,” Gunn replies.

“We’re very close friends”

When she’s not doing television and film roles, Jenna Fischer hosts the Office lookback podcast Office Ladies with her best friend and Office castmate Angela Kinsey. During a May 2025 episode, Fischer shared a story about a disastrous dinner party she had back when she and James were married. While Fischer didn’t speak highly of her rude celebrity dinner guests (whose names were withheld by Fischer out of politeness), she had nothing but kind things to say about her ex-husband.

“It was fun to reconnect with James about [the dinner party], though. We laughed really hard,” Fischer says. In a world where celebrities ‘spill the tea’ on their failed love affairs, there’s something wholesome about Gunn and Fischer being close friends who still call one another to share a laugh.

“I’m very close friends with Jenna,” Gunn says during a 2018 appearance on Michael Rosenbaum’s Inside of You podcast. “I think at the end of the day we were much better friends than we were marriage partners. And I think that we weren’t that good at being married to each other, but we were very good at getting divorced and being loving towards each other in that process. And we’re very close friends. She’s like my sister today.”

In 2007 Jenna Fischer and James Gunn asked themselves what a successful divorce looks like. Fischer helped rescue Gunn’s first superhero film from development hell. Fischer has helped Gunn find the right actors for his superhero projects. Gunn’s DC Universe has friends and actors he met through Fischer.

That’s what a successful divorce looks like.

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