When describing the lead-up to “The Paper,” star Chelsea Frei frequently returns to one word in particular: surreal.

“This week has honestly been like one of the more surreal weeks of my life,” says Frei, Zooming from her home in Los Angeles’ Venice neighborhood, looking cozy in a colorful oversize sweater. A few days earlier, she donned a white Marc Jacobs minidress for the L.A. premiere of “The Paper,” the new spinoff series from the creators of “The Office.”

“It felt like my wedding and I was literally in a white dress,” Frei says of attending the show’s kickoff alongside her friends, family and costars. “While we were shooting, I was just in awe of everybody — and then getting to celebrate, us all together, and see them all shine, see the looks that they all pulled — it was very, very fun.”

While “The Office” was set within a dysfunctional paper supply business in Scranton, Pa., “The Paper” takes place within a struggling local newsroom in Toledo, Ohio. Frei stars as Mare, the paper’s visual designer and voice of reason, who becomes a close confidante to the new editor in chief, portrayed by Domhnall Gleeson. Like “The Office,” the comedic series is told through a mockumentary format with frequent sit-down interviews with the cast.  

All 10 episodes will premiere on Peacock on Thursday, but Frei has already seen the entire season. “I saw the finale first, and then the first nine episodes, which is a weird way to watch it,” she says. “But I’m so proud of it. I can’t wait for people to get to see it.”

As the self-described “biggest ‘Office’ fan ever,” nerves were high when the 32-year-old actress found out that she was auditioning for a sequel. Her callback brought her back to 30 Rock, where she had interned more than a decade ago.

“ Everything about this has just been like so surreal,” she says, adding that she assumed that they’d cast “somebody famous” for her role. When she found out that she would be doing a chemistry read with series lead Gleeson, Frei realized that she was a serious contender.

Although this is her first major press tour, it isn’t Frei’s first experience with press attention. Growing up, her grandmother worked at the local newspaper in her hometown of Andover, Mass., which had its perks.

“Whenever I would be in the local plays in school, she’d be like, ‘I got you in the newspaper,’” Frei says. “I’ve kind of always had this love and fascination with local journalism.” 

In the lead-up to filming, she reached out to journalists at local L.A. newspaper the Palisadian-Post, adding that show creators Greg Daniels and Michael Koman were invested in “authentically portraying” journalism. “As time went on, I think we all became more and more  invested in showcasing local journalism in a real way, and showing how truly important it is,” Frei says. “So incredibly important, and we can’t lose it.”

One thing she didn’t do ahead of filming: rewatch episodes of “The Office.” “When I found out I was cast, I was like, ‘OK, I need a new comfort show,’” says Frei, who pivoted to reality TV for inspiration, looking to shows like “Love on the Spectrum,” “Love Is Blind” and “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.”

“ I found reality shows to be the most helpful in prepping for this because I think similar to them, our characters are figuring out what they wanna divulge to the camera, what they don’t wanna divulge to the camera,” Frei says. “Who are they in real life when nobody’s looking at them? And who are they when this camera crew is following them?” she adds. “So I found reality television incredibly helpful, more so than watching episodes of ‘The Office,’ which I think would’ve just stressed me out. I would’ve been like, ‘Oh god, people are gonna compare us to that.’ How can you be compared to that? It’s the best thing of all time.”

However, comparisons to “The Office” are impossible to avoid entirely. Placing Frei’s character in context of the original cast, her role falls somewhere between Pam and Jim: a little snarky, with potential for an office romance. Casting knowing glances into the camera when she’s not the focus of the scene, Mare also serves as a surrogate for show viewers. 

“ Truly every original cast member has been so insanely supportive and sweet. And you know, they also went through the comparison thing with the U.K. ‘Office,’” Frei says. “You just kind of hope that audiences will let that guard down of being like, ‘OK, it’s its own thing. I can judge it as its own thing.’ But it is, of course, incredibly terrifying.”

So far, Frei’s gotten positive feedback from where it matters most: Pam herself. 

“ I got truly one of the sweetest messages that made me cry from Jenna Fischer on Instagram last week after she watched it,” Frei says. “I’ve looked up to her my entire career. I think her performance in ‘The Office’ is one of the most grounding and heartfelt performances on television,” she adds. “I think she is the heart of that show in so many ways.”

In other words: “[It was] one of the cooler Instagram DMs I think I’ve ever gotten in my life,” Frei says.