Rainn Wilson Considers Leaving Acting For Death Doula Career

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Rainn Wilson has revealed he has been considering giving up acting and adopting a death-related career. Wilson is best known for starring in The Office as Dwight Schrute between 2005 and 2013. Widely considered to be a near-perfect show, Wilson has embraced the show’s legacy in many ways, including appearing on podcasts hosted by his fellow former The Office cast members.

Since The Office ended, Wilson has starred in several movies, including Smurfs: The Lost Village, and The Meg. He has also voiced Lex Luthor in a series of DC Comics’ animated films. He has popped up in TV shows like Adventure Time, Star Trek: Discovery, Mom, The Rookie, and Lessons in Chemistry.

Despite landing all those jobs, Wilson discussed giving up on acting during a September 2025 Late Night with Seth Meyers appearance. Since Wilson has hosted a spirituality podcast named Soul Boom w/ Rainn Wilson since 2024, Meyers asked him about taking his life in that direction. In response, the former The Office star explained he has been considering becoming a death doula.

Wilson: Well, as my celebrity star is fading – and it’s fine – I may put acting behind me. And there’s this beautiful occupation called death doula.

Meyers: It sounds like an incredibly beautiful idea.

Wilson: I mean, we have birth doulas. It’s a different kind of birth, right? It’s a birth into the next – into the next phase of our existence. Because I fully believe in the continuation and journey of the human soul beyond the material realm. And most world faiths agree. And to be there to usher someone with beauty and respect and dignity from this life to the next, to help the family transition, to understand what kind of legacy you want to have, how you want to celebrate what is a kind of a painful transition that is often ignored in Western society.

Meyers: It also seems like one of the goals would be to take the fear out of it, which, obviously, we all have, weirdly, about a thing we know is coming.

Wilson: Yes.

Meyers: And, so I would imagine having somebody who’s been there for sort of multiple versions of it, it must be a calming experience for people to have.

Wilson: Yeah. And I think that there’s a lot of hope to give people. There’s a lot of meditation you can bring. Contemplation is the word I was looking for – that you can bring to the process. Celebratory is kind of the wrong word, but how can you create a healing space for you and your family to mourn, to grieve, to celebrate, and to ponder this next mysterious step?

What This Means For Rainn Wilson

Rainn Wilson looking happy and content on the red carpet

Between Wilson’s podcast and the interviews he gives, there has been a theme over the last several years. Now that he has been a star for roughly two decades, the former The Office star has seemed like he is disinterested in the trappings of fame. Instead, it is when the professional actor is discussing meaningful topics like spirituality that he appears to come alive.

Wilson only stated that he had been considering becoming a death doula, and that could have only been an idle thought. However, if Wilson was being serious, and he goes through with the proposed career change, it seems like he might find a lot of happiness.

Our Take On Rainn Wilson’s Potential Career Change

Dwight standing on a desk screaming in The Office

As Wilson’s Late Night with Seth Meyers appearance was ending, the host suggested an alternate plan. After accepting that death doulas help people, Meyers suggested to the former The Office star that he could do that while still remaining an actor.

That certainly seems like the ideal situation for Wilson’s career, from the outside looking in. At the very least, it seems like now would be the wrong time for Wilson to completely give up on acting as long as he still gets enjoyment out of the process.

Now that The Paper has been released, that will shine even more of a spotlight on The Office. That makes it seem like this could be a moment to rejuvenate Wilson’s acting career. Since Oscar Nuñez is portraying his The Office character as a part of The Paper, there is even a chance that Rainn Wilson could cameo on the new show at some point in the future.