Summary

• Rashida Jones abruptly left Parks and Recreation, impacting the show's dynamic and eventually leading to its conclusion in Season 7.
• Ann Perkins' departure from Pawnee was a pivotal moment in the series, marking the end of her character arc and friendship with Leslie Knope.
• Jones' decision to leave the show was part of a mutual agreement with the showrunners that allowed her to explore new career paths post-departure.

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. For most of the series' run, Jones was a part of the main cast and Leslie's inseparable supporter, until showrunners decided that it was time to wrap Ann's character arc.

It's not uncommon for sitcoms to go downhill after a main character's exit, and although Parks and Recreation kept its high-quality comedy, the show came to an end 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 on May 7, by Arthur Goyaz: Like many TV shows that run for a long time, Parks and Recreation suffered with the departure of key characters of the main cast. The most relevant character exit has to be Ann Perkins', Leslie Knope's loyal best friend, played by the comedian actress and writer Rashida Jones. This article was updated to add more information about Jones' exit and her career after Parks and Recreation. In addition, changes were made to meet CBR's most current formatting standards.

Who Was Ann Perkins in Parks and Recreation?

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

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

Ann Perkins was a nurse whose relationship with Leslie started off on 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 polar 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 out 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 went on to become Leslie's soulmate. Chris was no easy person 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. At the end of the day, Chris and Ben were both great characters introduced after Parks and Recreation's Season 1.

After some back and forth, Ann decided she wanted to become pregnant and asked Chris to father her child. When Chris was offered a job at the University of Michigan, Ann chose to move 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 took place 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 It Made The Most Sense For Her To Leave The Show

According to Parks & 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, most 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.

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. Although the showrunners were transparent about their decision to end Ann Perkins' arc in the show, 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 that the reason they exited Toy Story 4 was 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 telaplay of Black Mirror's Season 3, Episode 1, "Nosedive," which helped set the new tone of the show 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, that is, working with animation. Recent animated projects she recently starred as a voice actress include the Oscar-winning Klaus, Spies in Disguise, Neo Yokio: Pink Christmas, The Grinch, and Duncanville.