There’s no denying that Recyclops — Dwight Schrute’s memorable Earth-loving (and eventually Earth-hating) alter ego — is one of the most influential fictional change makers of our time.
On the latest episode of Stitcher’s Office Ladies podcast, former co-stars Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey chatted all about the Season 6 episode “Shareholder Meeting,” which introduces Recyclops to the world. They recalled that the episode ran on Nov. 19, 2019, as part of NBC’s “Green Week” (aka “Green is Universal”), the network’s week-long lineup of programs made to increase environmental awareness. And they also chatted about the idea for Recyclops and spoke with the show’s costume designer Alysia Raycraft about Dwight’s intense wardrobe evolution.
“Our contribution to ‘Green Week’ was Recyclops. We have a whole cold open,” Fischer began.
“Oh, Rainn [Wilson] as Recyclops. He really got into it,” Kinsey said. “The show starts with Dwight entering dressed as a robot and demands everyone bow down before Recyclops. It’s time to recycle, guys.”
“It’s very over the top,” Fischer noted. “And then Jim has the talking head where he explains that five years ago, Dwight started dressing up as this Recyclops character [because] corporate had this mandated recycling program and this is Dwight’s answer to that.”
For those who need a refresher, the cold open kicks off a series of flashbacks that show Recyclops evolving over five years. We first see him as a chill dude wishing everyone “Happy Earth Day” and sharing the following fun fact: “Did you know that an old milk carton can be sawed in half and used as a planter?” Helpful! Harmless! Great!
The next year, Dwight adds to his costume a bit and Recyclops frustratedly asks, “Who has put a #7 plastic in a #4 bin?” Then things take a turn. Recyclops steps up his costume game and gets more aggressive with his environmental demands. After tragedy strikes his fictional planet, Recyclops renounces Earth Day and vows to destroy the planet. He shows up to work in a full suit of black armor, sprays aerosol, and trashes the workplace.
“The thing I like most about Recyclops is that he’s creating a different world for our child. A world where you truly can be anything you want,” Pam says. “God bless you, Recyclops, and your cold robot heart,” Jim jokes.
You can relive all the Recyclops cold open glory below, starting at around 3:47.
Bringing Recyclops to life
Like every good hero (or villain), Recyclops had quite the wardrobe change over the years. Fischer connected with costume designer Alicia Raycraft and got the inside scoop on Recyclops’ stunning transformation.
“I found out [Raycraft] worked in the theatre, and this is why she was so talented at building these costumes. She worked for Blue Man Group and she did the puppet maintenance on The Lion King on Broadway,” Fischer revealed. “To get started on this, she told me that she would take a picture of Rainn and then she would sketch like an overlay on top of it, so she could really see what Rainn would look like in all these different costumes. The first thing she would do is show her sketches to the writer.”
She shared that Raycraft’s initial concern was the Recyclops description reminded her of 30 Rock‘s environmentally conscious superhero Greenzo, played by David Schwimmer. A valid fear!
“When she was sketching out Dwight’s first costume, she wanted to make sure no one was going to think this was Greenzo,” Fischer said. “So then the script said ‘Earth Day, 2006. Dwight is wearing a ‘love Earth’ T-shirt, a cape, wrist guards, elbow pads, knee pads, moon boots, a full motorcycle helmet, and a larger eye in the middle of his forehead as he lectures everyone in the office. And in Alicia’s notes, she wrote this, which I found hilarious. She wrote, ‘I don’t think this has anything to do with Earth Day anymore for Dwight.'”
Raycraft wanted the costume to reflect that disconnect, so she started making things up.
Fischer explained that the present-day Recyclops was scripted as follows:
“He wears heavy green body armor, which makes it difficult to walk. There is a blinking LED display on his chest. He has aerosol cans taped to his hands, which spray a red mist. A weapon belt holds Chinese stars, boomerangs, a samurai sword, fencing épée. On his head he wears a helmet with a hole in the middle, showing his one giant eye.”
To execute this look, Fischer said Raycraft researched skateboarding, hockey, and lacrosse equipment.
“She also said there was a lot of back and forth about what the LED box should say. And then they finally settled on ‘kill.’ And that is how Recyclops evolved and ultimately came to be,” Fischer concluded.
Rainn Wilson channeling his inner Recyclops (the early years)
In case you didn’t know, in real life Rainn Wilson is a passionate advocate for the environment. In 2020, he chatted with Mashable about “An Idiot’s Guide to Climate Change,” a six-part YouTube docuseries he created with SoulPancake, the digital media/entertainment company he co-founded in 2009 that focuses on creating positive, impactful content.
When asked about his Office alter ego, Wilson had this to say: “I think Dwight is part right-wing nutjob, but he’s a diehard environmentalist. And he would never let party override his passion for the science and his passion for the planet, as witnessed by his dedication to Recyclops.”
Be sure to check out the full podcast episode to hear more behind-the-scenes stories about filming the episode, “Shareholder Meeting.”
You can stream episodes of The Office on Peacock and follow along with the podcast every week on Earwolf, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher.
