b'Blissfully Traveling the World with Rainn WilsonSouth Orange resident Melissa Wood gives us the grand tour of a documentary series.BY DONNY LEVIT Y ouprobablyknowactor,come- to lose. Spanning four continents, the travelogueinclined to think about these bigger ideas. Wilson dian, writer, and podcaster Rainntakes a comedic deep dive into multiple cultures andis a practitioner of the Bahai faith and his newest Wilson best from the wildly pop- resurfaces with many heartening stories. book, Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolu-ular NBC comedy The Office, inAnd if you havent heard of the World Happinesstion, was published in 2023.whichhegainedahugefollow- Report, well, its actually a thing. Iceland is up on theAs soon as Wood was approached with the shows ing playing the character Dwighttop of the list and Bulgaria is down lowbut thepitch, she was eager to sign on. Everybody on the Schrute, assistant (to the) regionalseries gives you a lot of delightful surprises that veerteam felt that way. You want to be part of something manager of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. Infrom the statistics.his most recent project, Wilson trades his ScrantonGeography of Bliss has a decidedly local con-workplace for an international journey to figure outnection.SouthOrangeresidentMelissaWood just what it is that makes a country happy. served as executive producer for the project, playing Rainn WilsonandtheGeographyofBlissbegana crucial role in managing the creative vision and streaming on Peacock in May 2023, a five-episodelogistics of a show that casts a wide international net. series based on Eric Weiners New York Times best- As far as Wood is concerned, Rainn Wilson was the selling book, The Geography of Bliss: One Grumpsideal host for such a project. Search for the Happiest Places in the World. WhatThere are a lot of travel shows out there right if I traveled the world exploring what makes somenowand a lot of travel hosts. But for Rainn, this places happier than others? says Wilson during theis something personal, says Wood. He started a shows introduction. Its been said that the searchmedia company over a decade ago called SoulPan-forhappinessisthechiefsourceofunhappiness.cake, which is meant to explore lifes big questions Thats okay. Im already unhappy. So I got nothing spirituality, depression, happiness. Hes naturallyMelissa Wood dressing up as a Viking at the Saga Mu-seum in Reykjavik, Iceland.32/ matters magazine / school 2023'