Some actors spend their entire careers hoping for one role audiences will never forget. Richard Riehle had hundreds of credits to his name, but for comedy fans, he’ll always be Tom Smykowski, the increasingly desperate Initech employee responsible for one of the worst business ideas in movie history. Office Space has only grown in popularity since its 1999 release, even bringing the cast back together for a Walmart commercial in 2022. Judging by the response to Riehle’s passing, Tom’s terrible idea may have become one of the actor’s most enduring comedy contributions.
Riehle died Oct. 15 at 78, and Wright Entertainment announced it Monday, Oct. 19. The veteran character actor appeared in everything from The Fugitive to Star Trek, but when fans began paying tribute on Reddit, nearly everyone seemed to think the same thing. They were determined to honor the actor without jumping to conclusions. And yes, you absolutely need to have seen Mike Judge’s 1999 comedy to appreciate this one.
What’s With The ‘Jump To Conclusions’ Jokes?
For anyone who needs a refresher, Riehle played Tom in Office Space, the poor guy whose job apparently involved dealing with customers so the engineers wouldn’t have to. When corporate consultants start questioning his usefulness, Tom’s increasingly frantic defense of his people skills becomes one of the movie’s funniest scenes.
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Things eventually take a dark turn for Tom before a car accident, and the resulting settlement allows him to retire. He then proudly unveils his million-dollar business idea: the Jump to Conclusions mat.
It’s basically a floor mat covered in different conclusions that people can physically jump to. His former coworkers are understandably horrified. The Jump to Conclusions gag has plenty of competition in a movie that also helped popularize the insult “ass clown,” but it is the sort of ridiculous joke that helped make the flick one of the most quotable comedies of the ’90s
Naturally, when news of Riehle’s death reached Reddit, fans began pulling out variations of that same joke. The r/television discussion quickly filled with condolences that doubled as references to his most famous character:
- u/bwoahconstricter: “I don’t want to ‘jump to conclusions,’ so I’ll just say rest in peace.”
- u/zidave0: “Now that Jump to Conclusions mat will never get finished. RIP”
- u/ntroopy: “This is a sad day. But let’s not jump to conclusions as to how he died.”
- u/whattheprob1emis: “I saw some rumors about this but didn’t want to jump to any conclusions, ya know?”
- u/Calraider7: “RIP. I know he liked to jump to Conclusions and was a real people person.”
If you scroll through the responses, you’ll find nearly 20 variations on the gag; I know I did. Some fans worked in Tom’s other famous lines, particularly his increasingly unhinged insistence that he possessed people skills. Others simply remembered how much they loved Riehle’s performance.
I suppose there are worse ways to be remembered than having an entire section of the internet collectively deliver the same joke you helped make famous 27 years ago.
A Great Character Actor With People Skills
Although Office Space famously struggled at the box office before finding its audience on home video and cable, it eventually became one of the most beloved cult comedies of the 1990s. The movie also gave Richard Riehle one of his most recognizable roles, though his career stretched across nearly five decades and hundreds of film and television appearances.
The Wisconsin-born character actor appeared in movies including Glory, The Fugitive and Bridesmaids. Television audiences may remember him as Walt Finnerty on Grounded for Life, while Star Trek fans will recognize him from The Next Generation’s beloved episode “The Inner Light”. He also made appearances in Voyager and Enterprise.
Riehle was one of those actors you recognized the second he appeared on screen, even if you couldn’t immediately place his name. Then he’d open his mouth, deliver a line and somehow make a supporting character stick with you for years. Mike Judge has created plenty of memorable oddballs throughout his movies and television shows, but Riehle deserves a lot of credit for making Tom Smykowski one of Office Space‘s most quotable characters.
The Reddit tributes were understandably full of jokes, but they also showed genuine affection. Fans remembered a performer who could turn a ridiculous business pitch into comedy gold and make an otherwise ordinary office worker unforgettable.
Tom Smykowski may never have convinced anyone to invest in his Jump to Conclusions mat, but Riehle certainly sold us on the character. Judging by how many people are still quoting him nearly three decades later, I’d say that’s worth a million bucks.
