No more gnawing on turkey legs at awkward dinner parties for Dwight Schrute. Or, at least the guy who made him one of the most iconic characters in TV history. On a recent episode of Conan, Rainn Wilson opened up on his newfound veganism—and exactly why he made the switch in the first place.
“My wife loves to rescue animals and she rescued these two little pot-bellied pigs and they live in our backyard—Snortington and Amy,” he said during the interview. “We built them a little piggy door and they come in at night and sleep in their little piggy beds.”
But Wilson didn’t think about the irony of his lifestyle choices until he was eating breakfast one day and realized just how crazy it was that he was still eating pork while cuddling up with his super-smart and loving pets.
“I was microwaving some of that Trader Joe’s bacon and chomping on it looking at these adorable little pigs. They play a little miniature piano for treats—they get little animal crackers. It was just heartbreaking sitting there looking at their beautiful little faces. It was macabre and terrifying, so I went vegan.”
“I was microwaving some of that Trader Joe’s bacon and chomping on it looking at these adorable little pigs. They play a little miniature piano for treats—they get little animal crackers,” he continued. “It was just heartbreaking sitting there looking at their beautiful little faces. It was macabre and terrifying, so I went vegan.”
Now that he’s officially cut meat out of his diet, he’s quickly learned the struggle of being vegan—but he’s totally OK with it: “Now I’m that annoying vegan friend that you go to the restaurant with,” he joked. “‘Do you have any vegan options? Does that have cheese in it?’ I’m that guy.”
But, nonetheless, he feels better than ever. In an Instagram post, he revealed just how much the change has impacted his health. Even though he said it was hard in the beginning, it’s more than worth it for his little piggy friends.
“Sometime in the second-and-a-half week, things shifted dramatically. I noticed that I had more energy! I was sleeping better and deeper. I didn’t need naps in the afternoon as much. I started to drop some pounds. And, bonus, it’s supposed to be good for the planet.”
“It was tough. Especially that first week,” he wrote. “I wanted steak and eggs so bad. I felt tired and cranky and hungry all the time, even with the buckets of quinoa I was shoveling into my mouth. Ugh. But then sometime in the second-and-a-half week, things shifted dramatically. I noticed that I had more energy! I was sleeping better and deeper. I didn’t need naps in the afternoon as much. I started to drop some pounds. And, bonus, it’s supposed to be good for the planet.”
And the best part? Even with the abundance of veggies in his diet, he joked he’s still all about those big, juicy beets.