The Office Series Finale: Steve Carell Admits He ‘Lied’ About Not Appearing In Season 9, Series Final Episode [SPOILERS]

The series finale of "The Office" had many emotional and surprising moments but perhaps none more so than Steve Carell's return as Michael Scott for Dwight and Angela's wedding.

In the episode, Jim told Dwight that he unfortunately could not serve as his best man (or "bestest mensch") because he was younger than Dwight. But that's when Dwight (and the camera) turned around to see Michael standing in the doorway for what Jim called the "best prank ever."

Carell was adamant for months that he would not return in the finale because he did want the episode to become all about him, but he told TVLine in an article published Tuesday that it was all a ruse.

"I lied. I lied for months to the press, to almost everyone, really," Carell said. "And I felt terribly for the cast and for [executive producer] Greg Daniels, because they all lied, too."

Carell knew for "several months" that he would make a cameo in the finale but everyone involved decided to keep it quiet "because we just figured it would be a fun surprise if people weren't expecting it."

Still, despite all the denials in the months leading up to the finale, Carell reiterated that he did not want to take attention away from the principal players.

"I didn't want it to be a big thing. I did it out of respect for the show and for the actors," Carell said. "My only hope with it was I didn't want it to be about Michael coming back. I didn't want the story to be about him in any way. I wanted it to be more of a tip of the hat to the show."