The ‘Parks and Recreation’ Joke That ‘Still Hurts’ for Rashida Jones
The cast of Parks and Recreation seemed to be having a pretty great time while making the show. At least that’s the sense that we get after spending countless hours watching blooper reels on YouTube.
But Rashida Jones, who played Ann Perkins on the show, just revealed that Parks and Rec’s producers once asked her to perform a scene that made her deeply uncomfortable. And it involved her love of ‘90s R&B.
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The episode “Sweet Sixteen” finds the Parks Department visiting Donna’s lake house, at which point Tom learns that her cousin is, in fact, Grammy nominee Ginuwine. While Tom is floored by the revelation, Ann has absolutely no idea who that is. And, unfortunately, “not loving ‘90s R&B” is number three on Tom’s “Oh no no” list, which comes very close to ending their brief, ill-considered relationship.
During a recent episode of Amy Poehler’s podcast Good Hang, Jones was asked whether or not this scene was the “best acting” that she’s ever done over the course of her career. “It’s still one of my biggest complaints,” Jones confessed.
“I remember we did the table read for that,” the Silo star went on to explain, “and I was like, ‘No, no. No one’s going to buy it, because I don’t buy it. Pick anybody else on this cast to try and play that in an honest way. It is so unfair that you’re making me do this.’ It still hurts. It really hurts.”
“How familiar are you with Ginuwine?” Poehler asked.
“We were married,” Jones joked.
On a more serious note, Jones, who is famously the daughter of late music legend Quincy Jones, explained to Poehler, “I live in ‘90s R&B. That’s where my heart is,” adding that Ginuwine is a “very important figure” in her life. So hinging an entire episode on her character’s ignorance of one of her idols was obviously tough.
Making matters even worse, Ginuwine’s name was misspelled in the script — although, as Jones pointed out in 2015, that still wasn’t as bad as her having to pretend to not know who he was.
That being said, it did make sense for Ann to be unaware of Ginuwine’s existence. But apparently even some viewers were somewhat thrown by the plot point, with at least one fan suggesting that making Jones, who grew up surrounded by music legends, claim to not know a famous ‘90s R&B star was some kind of meta joke.
While this experience may have been frustrating for Jones, at least she doesn’t have to deal with being force-fed calzones, like some other Parks and Recreation cast members.
