The clip comes from the American version of The Office on NBC, in the 2008 episode Frame Toby from season five. Michael Scott, played by Steve Carell, learns that HR representative Toby Flenderson, the coworker he despises most, has returned to the Dunder Mifflin office after leaving. His horrified outburst was clipped and shared as a reaction meme on YouTube and social media, where the escalating scream became shorthand for dread, denial and refusing to accept unwelcome news.