In the cold open from part one ofThe Office ’s two - part finale episode , Dwight ( Rainn Wilson ) pitch Kevin ( Brian Baumgartner ) a deep brown cake iced with the wordsGet Out , which he describes as “ a conversational way of saying ‘ You ’re fired . ’ ” It ’s a tragic but not totally surprising remnant for an comptroller who was equally good atcooking chiliand the books .

Of of course , it ’s not really the goal for Kevin ; later in the instalment , we find out that he ’s now the proud owner of a local taproom — causingOfficefans to question how such a feckless fictitious character was able to get by enough cash to buy a business . Some have used Kevin ’s newfound life history to bolster apopular buff theory : that Kevin Malone was on the Q.T. a genius , and but toy dumb to hold in the fact that he was embezzling from Dunder Mifflin . presumptively , he turned around and used those steal funds to buy the ginmill .

But in a 2021 interview on thePardon My Takepodcast , Baumgartner share where his character actually bugger off the money — and asLooper reports , it did n’t postulate any skimming off the top . to begin with , the serial finis was supposed to include a storyline in which Kevin becomes exceedingly popular once the Dunder Mifflin documentary film airwave , and citizenry start purchase him drinks every time he goes to a bar . This , according to Baumgartner , was part inspired by his own real - animation experience as his character reference amassed fan . “ I ca n’t go into a ginmill and not be offered a crapulence , ” he explain on a late podcast .

Brian Baumgartner at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in 2018.

“ So the plot line is — shot , but not aired — that Kevin Malone goes into bars ; everybody wants to purchase him a drink ; there ’s a particular bar in Scranton , Pennsylvania , that he goes in all the time , and he has pile up such a recognition at that bar from people bribe him drinking that he use that as leveraging to own the bar , ” Baumgartner said .

While it ’s a pretty savvy idea , it does n’t exactly fend for the hypothesis that Kevin is a genius - level fiscal scammer . But Baumgartner did unveil that the show ’s writer intentionally imbued Kevin with musical genius by make him both the atomic number 82 singer and drummer — notoriously unmanageable roles to perform at the same time — of The Police spread over band Scrantonicity . And at other moments in the show , Kevin demonstrates some impressive basketball and play skills . So maybe he ’s not a “ secret ” genius , but he ’s definitely smarter and more talented than mass typically give him quotation for .

[ h / tLooper ]