SCRANTON, Pa. — The popular mockumentary "The Office" released a never-before-seen cold open on New Year's Day, featuring Jim Halpert pulling one of his most elaborate pranks on co-worker Dwight Schrute.
In the scene, Jim and his wife Pam try to convince Dwight that he's in "The Matrix." They make a black cat run past his office door twice, then have a pair of identical twins do the same, to make Dwight believe there's been "a glitch in the system."
After a few more steps — part of a process that Jim says he "hired 30 people" for — Dwight goes down to the warehouse, where he meets Dunder Mifflin security guard Hank. Hank informs Dwight that his true identity is "Dorpheus... Morpheus' brother."
Similar to the 1999 "Matrix" film, Dorpheus presents Dwight with a red pill and a blue pill. Does he buy it? And which pill does he choose? We won't spoil it for you; watch below.
The scene ends with the message: "In Loving Memory of Hugh Dane," the actor who played Hank/Dorpheus. He died in 2018 from pancreatic cancer.
The scene was released to celebrate the show coming to Peacock, NBC's relatively new streaming service. The cold open was created for the show's 2013 series finale but was cut for time, according to Entertainment Weekly.
This story was first published by Spencer Burt at KSTU in Salt Lake City, Utah.
