Parks and Recreation is fondly remembered for its heartwarming portrayal of a group of city hall employees in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana.
Over seven seasons, the show followed these quirky characters as they formed a close-knit, makeshift family while striving to improve their community.
However, one aspect of the series stood out as somewhat contradictory to its otherwise uplifting tone: the relentless teasing of Jerry (Jim O’Heir).
Often the target of jokes due to habit and his easygoing demeanor, Jerry’s treatment by his colleagues sometimes clashed with the show’s overarching message of kindness and camaraderie.
This dichotomy hasn’t gone unnoticed by the cast, particularly Chris Pratt, who shared his thoughts on the dynamic in Jim O’Heir’s book, Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreation.
Reflecting on their time filming the series, O’Heir recounted a conversation with Pratt.
“I remember you, particularly more than some others, being worried about some of the Jerry bits being… mean,” O’Heir writes in the book. “I remember you saying, ‘Jimmy, you okay with these?’… Do you remember that feeling at all?”
Pratt confirmed he did, elaborating on his concerns. “I was concerned in some of those moments because I care about you and I love you, and I knew that there were some jokes that were, like, mean.
But meaner than they were funny. If it’s a joke, it’s funny. But if it’s mean for the sake of being mean, well, I’m not a huge fan of mean-spirited humor, and I just wanted to check in on you.”
Pratt shared a specific instance where he expressed discomfort with a joke about Jerry. “There was that time you use the printer and it says something like, ‘Jerry sucks’ on a piece of paper, and I just said, ‘I don’t think that’s funny. I don’t know about it,’” he told O’Heir.
“For the most part, I rolled with it, but there were a couple of times where I think it went too far and I was concerned for you.”
O’Heir noted that other cast members, including series lead Amy Poehler, also occasionally checked in on him regarding the pointed jabs at his character. “[I]t’s not like I expected everyone to check in on me,” O’Heir writes, “but the fact that you did was so special.”
Despite the humor at Jerry’s expense, the thoughtfulness of cast members like Pratt and Poehler highlights the care and respect shared among the team, ensuring that the spirit of Parks and Recreation extended beyond the screen.
