John Krasinski Jokes He Has 'Gosling on Speed Dial’ as He Preps for ‘Terrifying’ Off-Broadway Stage Return (Exclusive)

• John Krasinski is starring in the New York City premiere of Penelope Skinner's one-man play Angry Alan
• In a sit-down about the production with Tony Award-winning director Sam Gold, the actor teased that his nerves have him hoping pal Ryan Gosling will step in and take over the Off-Broadway role
• "It’s probably, maybe, the most terrifying thing I’ve done in my career," Krasinki said

John Krasinski is feeling the nerves about his upcoming return to the stage — and rehearsals haven't even begun!

The five-time Emmy-nominated actor (and PEOPLE's reigning Sexiest Man Alive) is starring in the New York City premiere of Penelope Skinner's one-man play Angry Alan this spring. And in a sit-down about the production with Tony Award-winning director Sam Gold, Krasinski teases that the speed at which opening night is coming has him hoping pal Ryan Gosling will step in and take over the role.

"It happened very fast. It’s still happening too fast," The Office alum says of the production's timeline in a clip from the chat that PEOPLE can premiere exclusively. "The fact that we’re doing interviews for this before we’ve done the play, or before I’ve even rehearsed it. So there’s plenty of time for me to pull out, is what I’m saying."

Gold isn't having it, though. "We have you on film now so you’re not allowed out of it," he tells the actor. "At the end of every meeting, there’s usually some threat of you not doing the play!"

"Yeah, what I do is I have Gosling on speed dial and as I walk out of the room I just go, 'Do you feel lie you wanna do it?' and if he says yes, he just takes it," Krasinski jokes.

Of course, there's no turning back for Krasinski now — nor does he actually want to.

At the top of his discussion with Gold, he explains that he's "been looking to get back on stage forever" — or at least, since he made his Off-Broadway debut in the 2016 Public Theater production of Sarah Burgess’ play Dry Powder (opposite three-time Emmy winner Claire Danes and six-time Emmy winner Hank Azaria).

"For me, there truly is nothing like being on stage, and I've only done it once professionally," he says. "But I’ve been deserpate to get back up and I coudnt find anything ... for years."

All that changed when Krasinski's agent sent him Angry Alan. "I think I texted [my agents] on page 5 that I was doing this. Like, 'I have to do this play,' " he recalls.

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He goes on to praise Skinner, telling Gold that she's "so talented' and wrote "such an unbelievable play."

"She’s just so funny," Krasinski says. "She somehow has the beautiful chemistry of such heart and such beautiful drama and the whole time with these turns of phrases that no one, I’ve never read anything like that. So I’m very excited about it."

"It’s probably, maybe, the most terrifying thing I’ve done in my career, the prospect of it," Krasinski notes. "And yet, the fear is equally met with so much excitement because of what she wrote."

Angry Alan, according to an official description, "explores one man’s journey down the digital rabbit hole — examining how far he's willing to go, and how much he's prepared to lose, for validation in a world where 'everybody’s changing the rules.' "

In the dark comedy, Krasinski will play Roger, a "divorced, demoted, and drifting" man "lost in an era that no longer makes sense. But when an online personality promises clarity, Roger dives in without looking back."

"Penny wrote, in my opinion, one of the most human characters I've seen on stage in a long time," Krasinski says in the clip. "This character of Roger, is going through life and he’s feeling lost and he’s feeling like he’s not quite sure how the next day’s going to go. And I think that I lot of people feel that. That idea of, 'How do you get through one day to the next when you’re going through stuff in your life?' is something that really connected to me immediately."

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Performances for Angry Alan begin on May 23, ahead of an official opening on June 11. The limited production is currently scheduled for just 10 weeks, through Aug. 3.

This will be the inaugural production of Studio Seaview, the new venue owned by Tony Award-winning theatrical production company Seaview. It occupies the former Tony Kiser Theatre (305 West 43rd Street) in midtown Manhattan.

Tickets for Angry Alan are now on sale. Video of the full conversation between Krasinski and Gold can be seen on angryalanplay.com.