Melora Hardin Felt Frustrated with The Office Fans' Take On Jan

This opinion about Jan Levinson seems to be the general consensus among The Office fans. But that was not always the case. In the early episodes of the beloved sitcom, Jan was a reasonable, no-nonsense vice president of northeast sales at Dunder Mifflin who refused to put up with Michael Scott's shenanigans.

At the beginning of Season 2, however, viewers learned that Jan had gotten divorced, which clearly affected her behavior and psychological well-being as she gradually slid down from there, reciprocating Michael's feelings by kissing him in an elevator and starting their weird, chaotic relationship.

In the span of just a few episodes, Jan went batshit crazy, and Michael suddenly went from being the crazy one to the rational one of the two.

Jan's toxic, selfish behavior and the way she treated Michael made her one of the most unlikable characters on the sitcom, which quickly became the subject of numerous fan discussions. However, Melora Hardin, the actress behind Jan, thinks there's more to her character than most fans see.

"She was, to me, a very multidimensional character. And I just loved her, I always loved her," the actress once told Today.

She described how many fans would come up to her and say they hated Jan. The actress said she always had an answer ready for all the haters:

"I'm like 'Clearly, you weren't watching very closely.' Because she's so much more than that."

Hardin also added that being a complicated character was exactly what made Jan an interesting and enjoyable role to play. Hardin's take on the character is understandable. Jan was anything but a two-dimensional character.

Knowing Michael's character and Jan's alcohol and drug problems, it is easy to see why their relationship was so terrible. But some of Jan's most cruel and selfish actions like Michael's vasectomies and the whole "Asturd" storyline can never be excused, and fans will surely continue to hate Hardin's character no matter what she or anyone else says.

There's no doubt that the majority of The Office fans can agree on one thing, perfectly expressed by a fan on Reddit:

"I hate Jan but love Melora Hardin. That actress is AMAZING. She does a brilliant job of being professional at first and then slowly going insane. I love it so much. I just feel like it needs to be said."