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If you tuned into The Office during its nine season run, you've likely had questions about a certain character's motives and mysterious background – and we're not talking about Creed. The beloved sitcom not only spurred many memes but also countless theories among fans about some of its characters, including Bob Vance (Vance Refrigeration).
Two of the show's stars, Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey, addressed the longstanding idea that Bob Vance, Phyllis Lapin's husband, was actually a member of the mafia while discussing fan theories on a recent episode of their Office Ladies podcast, per People. When Bob was introduced as Phyllis' boyfriend in season two, viewers didn't know much about him other than he ran a refrigeration company. This mystique led fans' imaginations to run wild and culminated in the idea that he was involved in something "shady."
"Here's the theory," Fischer explained. "Bob Vance is actually in the mafia and just tried to sell himself as a fridge salesman in this documentary so he'd look like a legitimate business in front of the public and the police who may be suspicious of him."
The Hall Pass actress shared some of the "evidence" she found on Reddit and in emails sent in by fans, such as Bob appearing to have "deep pockets" that allowed him to drop $1,000 in an auction just to hug his wife and how he offered Phyllis a "senior advisor" position at his business that paid cash and that even she thought sounded illegal.
Fischer also made sure to include the "most damning pieces of evidence" in her round-up: Phyllis admitting that Bob had been accused of money laundering several times "because the FBI is jealous of his success" and how no witnesses showed up for a trial when Bob was facing grand jury indictments.
She described the latter situation as "very mafia-like" while Kinsey agreed that "they were scared" and "didn't want to go up against Bob, the head of the Scranton Mafia."
"There are a number of episodes that reference Bob muscling people," Fischer said, adding that Phyllis once even threatened to "get Bob involved" in a party dispute with John Krasinski's Jim Halpert.
After Fischer presented her co-host with the evidence, Kinsey appeared to be on board with the theory.
"I think he's definitely into some shady business," she said.
What do you think?