Ben Stiller Reveals Barack Obama Turned Down Offer To Make A Key Cameo In 'Severance'

Actor and Severance executive producer Ben Stiller revealed in an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live! that he once approached former President Barack Obama to narrate a pivotal video for the hit Apple TV+ show only for Obama to decline the offer in an email.

Stiller hoped to cast former President Barack Obama as the voice of the anthropomorphic Lumon office building in the “Lumon is Listening” propaganda video featured in the season 2 premiere. Though Obama declined the offer, he reportedly responded by email, expressing that he’s a “big fan” of the show.

Stiller said to host Jimmy Kimmel:

“I didn’t ask him in person. I knew someone that knew his lawyer, and his lawyer said ‘I can relay the request if you write an email,’ so I wrote an email to him."

"Like two days later I get an email back from President Barack Obama saying, ‘Hey Ben, big fan of the show, love Season 1, can’t wait for Season 2. … Don’t think I have time in my schedule to make this happen.'”

“And like, come on, what’s more important than doing the voiceover for the animated building in ‘Severance’? But it was pretty cool that he responded.” Instead, Keanu Reeves voices the building in the animated “Lumon Is Listening” video in the series."

You can hear what Stiller said in the video.

People wondered what could have been.

Severance, known for its gripping take on work-life balance, has become Apple TV+’s most-watched series, according to the streamer.

Created by Dan Erickson, the show follows Lumon employees played by Adam Scott, Britt Lower, John Turturro, and Zach Cherry, who undergo a controversial surgical procedure. This operation, known as "severance," splits their consciousness into two distinct identities: their work selves, called "innies," and their personal selves, known as "outties."

Its first season earned 14 Emmy nominations—including Best Drama Series and Best Director and won a Peabody Award. After a three-year hiatus, script rewrites, and reshoots, the second season finally returned in January. Fans have dubbed the show a “mystery box series,” a label that Stiller admitted he had never heard of.