Who is Angela Martin in The Office?

Show

The Office

Played by

Angela Kinsey

First episode

“Pilot”Season 1, Episode 1, aired March 24, 2005

Role

Main cast

Network

NBC

Occupation

Senior accountant, Dunder Mifflin Scranton

Show run

2005 to 2013

Also known as

Angela Schrute, Angela Lipton, Angela Noelle Martin

Angela Martin runs the accounting department and the Party Planning Committee at Dunder Mifflin Scranton with a tight smile and an iron rulebook. Played by Angela Kinsey, she is tiny, stern, devoted to her cats, and far more passionate than she lets on.

On The Office, Angela Martin's story runs through Dwight Schrute (Husband), Andy Bernard (Ex-fiance), Oscar Martinez (Fellow Accountant), Kevin Malone (Fellow Accountant), Phyllis Vance (Rival), and Pam Beesly (Frenemy).

Who is Angela Martin?

Angela is the senior accountant at the Scranton branch, sharing a corner of the office with Oscar and Kevin. She also chairs the Party Planning Committee, which she runs with total control, and early on she serves as the office safety officer. She is deeply religious, socially conservative, and quick to judge anyone who falls short of her standards, which is nearly everyone.

At home Angela lives with a rotating cast of beloved cats, including the ill-fated Sprinkles. She dresses modestly, disapproves of almost everything, and yet carries on one of the most heated secret romances in the building.

Personality and comedy

Angela's comedy comes from the distance between her rules and her behavior. She scolds Pam and Phyllis for their love lives while sneaking off to the warehouse with Dwight. She treats party planning like a war, sulks when people skip her events, and almost never apologizes. Her withering one-liners and tiny, furious presence make her a perfect foil for warmer characters.

When she and Dwight are together, the show reveals a hidden, oddly sweet side. Their code names, gifts, and shared intensity make them strangely well matched, and by the end of the series Angela has softened enough to laugh with the office instead of glaring at it.

Key storylines

Angela and Dwight begin a secret relationship in season two. Pam starts to suspect it in "Email Surveillance," and it lasts until Dwight puts down her sick cat Sprinkles in the season four premiere. Andy then courts and proposes to her, but she resumes the affair with Dwight behind his back. Phyllis, who caught them, blackmails Angela for control of the Party Planning Committee and finally exposes the affair at the office Christmas party, leading Andy and Dwight to dump her.

She later signs a contract with Dwight to have a baby, meets State Senator Robert Lipton at Dwight's hay festival, and marries him. Her son Phillip is born in "Jury Duty." In season nine the senator turns out to be having an affair with Oscar and comes out publicly, leaving Angela evicted and staying with Oscar. Dwight proposes in "A.A.R.M.," Angela admits Phillip is his son, and they marry in the finale.

Behind the scenes

Angela Kinsey originally auditioned to play Pam. The producers felt her take was too feisty for the role, but they brought her back for a part written for her, Angela Martin. Like several cast members, Kinsey came from an improv background. She was a recurring player in season one and part of the starring cast from season two to the end.

Since 2019 Kinsey has co-hosted the rewatch podcast Office Ladies with her friend Jenna Fischer, sharing behind-the-scenes stories episode by episode. Angela remains a favorite for her deadpan cruelty, her cats, and her unlikely love story with Dwight.

Angela Martin: frequently asked questions

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