Parks and Recreation: Why Rashida Jones' Ann Perkins Left the Series (2024)

Rashida Jones played the beloved Ann Perkins in NBC's Parks and Recreation and her abrupt departure in Season 6 caught fans by surprise. Parks and Recreation is known for its cast of colorful characters. Two of those characters are Deputy Director Leslie Knope and her best friend Ann Perkins. Jones was part of the main cast and Leslie's inseparable supporter for most of the series' run until showrunners decided it was time to wrap up Ann's character arc.

It's not uncommon for sitcoms to go downhill after a main character's exit. Although Parks and Recreation kept its high-quality comedy, the show ended in Season 7, just a few episodes after Ann's departure. Jones' character left Parks and Recreation to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan, leaving her best friend Leslie behind for a new life with Chris Traeger, another main character played by Rob Lowe. Ann would return as a guest star before the series ended, but her absence was deeply felt in Parks and Recreation's final season. Here's why Rashida Jones decided to leave the show.

Updated by Jordan Iacobucci on August 31, 2024: Ann Perkins' departure from Parks and Recreation marks a turning point in the series and, while it continued to make fans laugh, the sitcom never fully recovered from the loss of Rashida Jones. This article has been updated to include additional information and to adhere to CBR's updated formatting guidelines.

Who Was Ann Perkins in Parks and Recreation?

Ann Didn't Start On The Best Terms With Leslie, But They Became Best Friends

Parks and Recreation's Highest-Rated Episodes, According to IMDb:

Ann Perkins was a nurse whose relationship with Leslie started on a rocky footing. In Parks and Recreation's Season 1, Ann was living with her goofy boyfriend Andy Dwyer, who broke his foot in the massive pit next to Ann's house. The incident caused the nurse to confront Leslie and the Parks and Recreation staff during public meetings and advocate for the city hall to fill in the pit. Leslie took a personal interest in the situation, becoming good friends with Ann after falling into the fateful pit she was hired to fill.

Throughout the series, Ann worked closely with Leslie and the other Parks and Recreation members, often playing the straight man to their more zany personalities and adventures. There's no denying that she was the voice of reason while Leslie was the voice of heart. The two were opposites but completed each other. This contrasting nature made the relationship between Ann and Leslie a unique part of the show.

Apart from being the voice of reason, Ann's love interests heavily impacted Parks and Recreation as the show progressed. One of the things about Parks and Recreation that made no sense is that Ann and Andy started as a couple. Their relationship consisted of Ann supporting the house by herself and doing everything for Andy, while he stayed on the couch all day complaining and drinking beer. It's true that Andy underwent a fascinating character arc and became a sweet addition to Parks and Recreation's main cast, but Ann was introduced as a strong-willed, independent woman from the get-go. It's genuinely surprising it took her so long to break up with Andy.

Ann went on to have a few failed romances with overlooked city planner Mark Brendanawicz, a main character who left Parks and Recreation early on, and Parks Department employee Tom Haverford. However, Ann's most significant love interest was Chris Traeger, introduced in Season 2, Episode 23, "The Master Plan" alongside Ben Wyat, who became Leslie's soulmate. Chris wasn't easy to handle: he was obsessed with health and had a peculiar way of addressing others. It took some time until their romantic relationship turned into something solid, but before long, every time Chris said "Ann Perkins" fans could tell the lines were filled with love. Ultimately, Chris and Ben were great characters introduced after Parks and Recreation had an established presence.

After some back and forth, Ann decided to become pregnant and asked Chris to father her child. When Chris was offered a job at the University of Michigan, Ann decided to Ann Arbor with him, since it allowed her to be closer to her family. Leslie threw a goodbye party for her friend and turned the lot that used to be Ann's house's pit into the Pawnee Commons. She and Ann had an emotional farewell, with Ann promising that Leslie would always be her best friend. Ann's official departure was in Season 6, episode 13, "Ann and Chris," marking the end of an era. In one of the many time jumps in Parks and Recreation's final episode, it was revealed that Ann and Chris eventually moved back to Pawnee.

Why Did Rashida Jones Leave Parks and Rec?

Ann's Character Arc Ended And Made Most Sense For Her To Leave

According to Parks and Recreation's showrunners, it was planned for Ann and Chris to leave the series simultaneously, as they felt both characters' stories had reached natural conclusions. Executive producer Mike Schur revealed that the decision was mutual and would allow both actors to explore new career paths. In an interview with HuffPost, Schur made it clear everyone was on the same page when it came to Jones and Lowe's departures. "We had the idea creatively to sort of move in that direction, and it totally dovetailed and aligned with what the two actors envisioned for themselves in their careers. So it's a big, happy, mutual hug-fest celebration," he explained.

Jones echoed Schur's praise, tweeting "I will love this department forever." She moved on to focus not only on acting, but writing and producing as well. Though Jones left the show, Ann Perkins would continue to play an integral role, returning briefly after the birth of her and Chris's son Oliver in Season 6, Episode 17, "Galentine's Day." Jones also guest-starred in the series finale and reunion special that aired during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The argument that it was the "right moment" for Ann and Chris to leave the show is a bit awkward because the big decision doesn't concern only these two characters. Ann and Chris directly impacted other character arcs in the show, specifically Leslie and Ben's. While it's true that their departure gave space for overlooked characters to grow, it's difficult to deny that their definitive exit didn't harm Parks and Recreation's well-established character dynamics. Leslie lost her long-time friend and stopped talking with Ron in Season 7, putting her in a dark, chaotic place.

Every Time Ann Perkins Returned In Parks And Recreation

It didn't take long for Rashida Jones to return to Parks and Recreation as a guest star after leaving the main cast. Only four episodes after her departure, Ann Perkins appears in "Galentine's Day," when Leslie visits her after hearing that she has given birth to her first child. The episode deals with Leslie trying to replace Ann, only to find that no one can fill her shoes. Rashida Jones's next appearance doesn't come until the end of Parks and Recreation, where she appears in several flash-forwards alongside her husband, Chris Traeger.

Surprisingly, Parks and Recreation's series finale wasn't the last time audiences saw Ann Perkins. Rashida Jones appeared alongside the other main cast members of the series in "A Parks and Recreation Special," a one-episode reunion aired in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdown. The special follows a Zoom call between the main characters, including Ann and Chris, who briefly update their status in the years after Parks and Recreation ended. Audiences learn Ann returned to work as a nurse during the pandemic, helping whoever she could, though it meant quarantining from her family. This special update from Ann also served as a terrific reminder of the real heroes who worked hard in hospitals and quarantine centers to help stop the spread of COVID-19.

What Has Rashida Jones Done Since Parks and Recreation?

Rashida Jones' Latest Projects:

After starring in the beloved mockumentary series The Office and David Fincher's The Social Network, Rashida Jones found herself at the peak of her career in the early 2010s, especially with the loyal fanbase that made Parks and Recreation run for so long. The showrunners were transparent about their decision to end Ann Perkins' arc in the show. However, another major reason why Jones departed Parks and Recreation was her involvement with Toy Story 4, a major franchise installment produced by the market giant Pixar, from Disney.

What should've been the biggest step in Jones' career resulted in a rocky exit and painful frustrations. Although Jones is one of the original writers of Toy Story 4, she left the project before the movie could see the light of day. In a statement made to Entertainment Weekly, Jones and her writing partner Will McCormack revealed they exited Toy Story 4 because of Pixar's poor treatment of female and minority voices.

After the Toy Story 4 incident, Jones' career took an abrupt turn for the best. She leaned towards a more caustic approach to comedy by writing the teleplay of Black Mirror's Season 3, Episode 1, "Nosedive," which helped set the show's new tone once Netflix acquired its rights. In addition, Jones joined the cast of Angie Tribeca in 2016, an Action Comedy series where she played the titular character; a detective assigned to solve all sorts of absurd cases in LA.

In 2020, she starred in #BlackAF opposite Kenya Barris and teamed up with Sofia Coppola and Bill Murray for On the Rocks, a charming father-and-daughter story. Jones' bitter departure from Disney didn't stop her from continuing to do what she loves — working with animation. Recent animated projects in which Jones starred as a voice actress include the Oscar-winning Klaus, Spies in Disguise, Neo Yokio: Pink Christmas, The Grinch, and Duncanville.

Parks and Recreation

TV-14

The absurd antics of an Indiana town's public officials as they pursue sundry projects to make their city a better place.

Release Date

April 9, 2009

Cast

Amy Poehler , Chris Pratt , Rashida Jones , Rob Lowe , Aziz Ansari , Aubrey Plaza , Nick Offerman

Main Genre

Comedy

Seasons

7

Creator

Greg Daniels, Michael Schur