Ryan Howard (The Office)

Ryan Howard
The Office character
B. J. Novak as Ryan Howard.
First appearance	"Pilot"
Last appearance	"Finale"
Portrayed by	B. J. Novak
Information
Nickname(s)	Fire Guy Temp Fired Guy Big Turkey Ry Hired Guy Egghead Mr. Understood Wunderkind Shoe Bitch
Gender	Male
Occupation	Unknown Office temp, Dunder Mifflin, Scranton PA Full-time Salesman and Customer Service Supervisor, Dunder Mifflin, Scranton Sales representative Former Vice President, North East Region and Director of New Media Receptionist Bowling Alley employee Salesman, Michael Scott Paper Company Inc. CEO of WUPHF.com
Spouse(s)	Kelly Kapoor
Relatives	Unnamed Mother Unnamed Father Drake Howard (son)
Based on	Ricky Howard Neil Godwin

Ryan Bailey Howard (born May 5, 1979) is a fictional character on the US television series The Office. He is portrayed by the show's writer, director, and executive producer B. J. Novak, and is based upon Ricky Howard from the original British version of The Office (as well as Neil Godwin, during the fourth season), although his role is significantly expanded to that of a main character.

Little is known about Ryan Howard's early life, but it is revealed in a deleted scene from "Diversity Day" that he grew up in Scranton. In the webisode "The Story of Subtle Sexuality", Ryan mentions that his parents live in separate houses, which implies that they are separated. At the beginning of the series, Ryan Howard is a temporary employee at the Scranton branch of the fictitious paper distributor Dunder Mifflin who joined the staff in the first episode, earning him the nickname "The Temp".

In early episodes he is shown to be uncomfortable with his professional relationship with his boss, Michael Scott. Michael often forces Ryan to carry out menial tasks for him while at the same time, becoming obsessed with Ryan's personal life as well as gaining Ryan's friendship. As the series progresses, Ryan begins to display a great deal of contempt and disdain for both his coworkers and his job. This becomes more apparent when Ryan is promoted in "The Job" to work at Dunder Mifflin's corporate office in New York. This leads to Ryan becoming an egotistical braggart despite lackluster sales skills. In the season 4 finale "Goodbye, Toby", Ryan is arrested for committing fraud. He is eventually released and required to work community service.

In the season 5 premiere Ryan returns to the Scranton branch after Michael arranges for him to work Pam's job. However, his malevolent aspirations to climb back to the top of the corporate ladder are revealed when he adds Jim and Kevin to a list of people who "will be sorry" when he returns to the top.