Andrew Baines Bernard (born Walter Baines Bernard Jr.) is a fictional character portrayed by

Ed Helms Edward Parker Helms (born January 24, 1974) is an American actor, musician and comedian. From 2002 to 2006, he was a correspondent on Comedy Central's '' The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''. He played paper salesman Andy Bernard in the NBC sit ...

in the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

comedy television series ''

The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...

.''

Character synopsis

Season 3 (2006–2007)

Andy's character is introduced in the season premiere of ''The Office'' as the Regional Director of Sales at the Stamford branch of Dunder Mifflin, which subsequently merges with the

Scranton Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

branch. After Jim (played by

John Krasinski John Burke Krasinski (; born October 20, 1979) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his role as Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'' (2005–2013), where he was also a producer and occasional director. He directed, co-w ...

)

pranks A practical joke or prank is a trick played on people, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. The perpetrat ...

him repeatedly, Andy is sent to anger management training after punching a hole in an office wall in episode 14 and is absent from the show until episode 19. Notably, in episode 21, Andy unexpectedly discovers his girlfriend is a high-school student.

Season 4 (2007–2008)

Unaware of her romantic past with colleague Dwight (played by Rainn Wilson), Andy develops an interest in and later a relationship with Angela during season 4, putting him in conflict with Dwight. This culminates in the

season finale A season finale (British English: series finale; Australian English: season final) is the final episode of a season of a television program. This is often the final episode to be produced for a few months or longer, and, as such, will attempt to ...

, in which Andy proposes to Angela. Later that episode however, Angela and Dwight have sex and are witnessed by Phyllis (played by Phyllis Smith).

Season 5 (2008–2009)

Still unaware of Angela's

affair An affair is a relationship typically between two people, one or both of whom are either married or in a long-term Monogamy, monogamous or emotionally-exclusive relationship with someone else. The affair can be solely sexual, solely physical or ...

with Dwight, Andy begins season 5 planning their wedding. However,

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

(played by Steve Carell) later tells Andy about the affair. Andy later confronts Dwight, although they reconcile upon realizing that Angela lied to them both. Andy cancels his wedding plans and Dwight also ends his relationship with Angela.

Season 6 (2009–2010)

Andy develops an attraction to new secretary Erin (played by

Ellie Kemper Elizabeth Claire Kemper (born May 2, 1980) is an American actress, best known for her roles of Erin Hannon in the sitcom ''The Office'' (2009–2013) and Kimmy Schmidt in the sitcom '' Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt'' (2015–2019). She has also app ...

) during season 6, and asks her out in episode 18. However, Erin breaks up with him in episode 22 after discovering Andy's previous engagement to Angela. Andy learns of and records a printer fault in episode 24 and sends a video to the press, attracting the ire of company

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

Jo (played by

Kathy Bates Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress. Kathy Bates filmography, Her work spans over five decades, and List of awards and nominations received by Kathy Bates, her accolades include an Academy Awards, Academy Award, t ...

), but the approval of Erin.

Season 7 (2010–2011)

Erin begins a romantic relationship with Gabe (played by Zach Woods), devastating Andy. However, she gradually begins to lose interest and eventually breaks up with him, which Gabe blames Andy for. In the

, Andy interviews for a regional manager following Michael's departure and refuses Erin after she asks for a relationship with him again.

Season 8 (2011–2012)

Andy introduces his new girlfriend Jessica (played by Eleanor Seigler) in episode 10, causing conflict with Erin. However, he realizes he still loves Erin in episode 18 and travels to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

to win her back, breaking up with Jessica. Andy is also appointed the new regional manager during season 8, although briefly loses the role to Nellie Bertam (played by Catherine Tate) in episode 19, regaining it in the

after convincing

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

(played by Andy Buckley) to buy out Dunder Mifflin and become

Season 9 (2012–2013)

Andy sails away in

The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

with his brother Walter (played by

Josh Groban Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, ...

) in episode 6, not returning until episode 15. Neglected, Erin eventually breaks up with him for her new interest, Pete (played by Jake Lacy). Amid deteriorating relationships with her and the rest of the office, Andy pays

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...

Carla to help him pursue his dream of stardom in episode 19, and successfully gets himself fired in episode 21. In the

series finale A series finale is the final installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often a television series. It may also refer to a final theatrical sequel, the last part of a television miniseries, the last installment of a literary series, ...

set one year later, Andy has found a job at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

's Admissions Office, although he has found some fame after his behavior in a singing competition

reality TV Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 199 ...

show was parodied on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

.'' Andy exits the show with the quote to the camera: "I wish there was a way to know you're in the good old days before you've left them."

Behind-the-scenes

The character is named after American economist Andrew Bernard, professor of international economics at the

Tuck School of Business The Amos Tuck School of Business Administration at Dartmouth College is the graduate business school of Dartmouth College, a private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. It was founded in 1900 as the first institution in th ...

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

. While Andy was initially meant as a temporary character in season 3 of ''The Office'', the character "grew" on

Greg Daniels Gregory Martin Daniels (born June 13, 1963) is an American screenwriter, television producer, and director. He has worked on several television series, including writing for ''Saturday Night Live'' and ''The Simpsons'', adapting '' The Office'' ...

and the writers, and they decided to have Andy return to the office from anger management and become a permanent character.

Reception

Initially considered an abrasive addition to the show, Andy Bernard later became a fan favorite due to his character development throughout the series. Fans reportedly did not enjoy Andy's arc in the final season, which saw him revert to his worst tendencies showed in earlier seasons and treat his co-workers poorly, with some commentators wondering if the show's writers did not know what to do with the character. Andy was named one of the most annoying TV characters of 2011 by ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...

.'' ''

Nerve A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons). Nerves have historically been considered the basic units of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the Electrochemistry, electrochemical nerv ...

'' ranked him the second funniest character in the series, behind only Michael Scott. During the final season, Alan Sepinwall of ''

Uproxx Uproxx Studios (stylized as ''UPROXX'') is an American music, entertainment and popular culture website and content studio. It was founded in 2008 by Jarret Myer and Brian Brater. The website was acquired in 2014 by Woven Digital (which later ...

'' described Andy's personality as a "malevolent version of Michael Scott", while Erik Adams of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

'' wrote that "no amount of last-minute humanizing can win the audience back to ndy'sside".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard, Andy The Office (American TV series) characters Fictional characters from Connecticut Fictional salespeople Fictional musicians Fictional dancers Television characters introduced in 2006 Fictional managers American male characters in sitcoms