Throughout the seven seasons of Parks and Recreation, fans saw relationships come and go. Some couples were literally *Chris Trager voice* relationship goals, while others were short lived subplots. For example, we saw Andy Dwyer and April Ludgate’s relationship stick until the very end, while Ann Perkins and Mark Brendanawicz called it “Brendanaquits” early on.
And just like their characters, the real life cast of Parks and Rec have had their relationship ups and downs. Some have found their person to awesome sauce (if you know, you know) for the rest of their lives, while others have faced some relationship troubles. Then there are cast members Retta (Donna) and Jim O’Heir (Jerry), who have chosen not to share much about their personal lives at all, despite being public figures.
But one of the best parts of being a Parks and Rec fan is that quite a few of the cast mates have actually dated each other in real life. That just shows how close they all really are! So let’s dive into the real life partners of the cast of Parks and Rec.
Amy Poehler had relationships with multiple Parks and Rec co-stars
While Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt are one of the cutest TV couples of all time, sadly Amy Poehler and Adam Scott are not together in real life. But Poehler has had relationships with a couple of her Parks and Rec co-stars. While filming the early seasons of Parks and Rec, Poehler was married to Will Arnett, who guest starred in season two. According to the AP, the two had been together since 2003 and share two sons. Unfortunately, they split in 2012 and finalized their divorce by 2016.
Shortly after Poehler and Arnett’s split, People reported that Poehler started dating another Parks and Rec co-star, Nick Kroll. Kroll has a recurring role on Parks as radio personality “The Douche,” and while he and Poehler’s characters never dated on the show, they dated for two years in real life when scheduling conflicts reportedly derailed the relationship. Despite their split, Poehler and Kroll still seem to be on good terms though because they were spotted hanging out and laughing at the 2019 Vanity Fair Oscar Party.
Poehler hasn’t dated anyone publicly since Kroll, but there has been some speculation that she and Arnett were back together. Poehler and Arnett revealed they were quarantining together during an April 2020 appearance. Some fans thought this meant they might have reconciled, while others pointed out they could’ve just been on lockdown together for the sake of their kids.
Nick Offerman is married to his Parks and Rec co-star Megan Mullally
Ron Swanson and Tammy Swanson aka Tammy 2 might have one of the most toxic relationships on Parks and Rec, but in real life, Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally are a perfect match. According to Bustle, Offerman and Mullally met in 2000 when they both had roles in the play The Berlin Circle. They continued acting alongside each other on Mullally’s show, Will & Grace. and by 2002 they were engaged. Offerman discussed their engagement in July 2018 during an appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden. He said, “We were in London which is our favorite city in the world, it’s very romantic for us … I had prepared a handmade walnut box in the shape of a heart that hinged open to reveal the ring.” And while that sounds so Ron Swanson of him, it make sense considering Offerman is an accomplished and acclaimed woodworker.
According to People, Offerman and Mullally got married in 2003 and they are still going stronger than ever, as of this writing. They share photos on social media celebrating their milestone anniversaries, they host a podcast together, and they still make TV appearances together, including a memorable and hilarious appearance on The Bachelor. Clearly, Offerman and Mullally are just as funny outside Parks and Rec as they are on Parks and Rec, just without the drama, screaming, and multiple divorces.
Rashida Jones' love life tracks with her Parks and Rec character
Rashida Jones plays Ann Perkins on Parks and Rec, and it’s no secret that she’s a “beautiful tropical fish.” Throughout the show, Perkins dated Andy Dwyer and Mark Brendanawicz, but she found true love with City Manager, Chris Traeger. By the end of Parks and Rec, Perkins and Traeger have their first child together. And in real life, Jones has had a somewhat similar romantic journey.
According to ET, Jones got engaged in 2013 to celebrity music producer Mark Ronson, who, according to Billboard, has worked with Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Adele, Amy Winehouse, and more. Jones and Ronson broke up about a year after their engagement, but “remain good friends.”
Since then, Jones has been more private about her love life. She started dating Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig (above) around 2015, and the two quietly welcomed their son Isaiah in 2018. Koening reflected on his art and his life in a 2019 GQ profile, telling the outlet, “There’s moments where I’ve thought to myself: It kind of doesn’t get better than this. Like, spend the morning with your family, then you come to work in a place like this, hang out, and then you go back to your family.” The then-relatively new dad also said the experience of fatherhood still felt “surreal,” although a peek at his Instagram, where he shared a snap of himself geared up in a baby carrier, indicates he seems to have acclimated well to the role.
This Parks and Rec star found a wife who shares his 'values'
Chris Pratt will always be the sweet, chubby Andy Dwyer in our hearts. And like Andy, Pratt has had a couple serious relationships that we know about. According to Cosmopolitan he was married to Anna Farris for eight years and they share their son Jack together. Fans were heartbroken when Farris and Pratt split in 2017, but they’ve both moved on since their divorce — Farris, with cinematographer Mike Barrett, and Pratt, when he started dating Katherine Schwarzenegger — yes, Arnold’s daughter, who he started seeing in 2018. The two married in 2019 and welcomed their daughter Lyla in August 2020.
And while Schwarzenegger’s parents are, of course, the ubiquitous action star and journalist Maria Shriver, according to her website, she’s also an author, animal advocate, and blogger. In an appearance on The View, she dished that she and Pratt met at church, which was important to her, because her mother always advised her to find a man who shared her “values.” Schwarzenegger also shared that her mom gave her the seal of approval on her book The Gift of Forgiveness, in which she profiled victims of horrible tragedies. “Forgiveness has been such a big part of our lives,” she revealed, perhaps subtlety hinting at her father’s very public marital indiscretions. “And I think when you’re able to have that as a part of your life you know how important it is to kind of spread that message.”
Aubrey Plaza is pretty private about her long term relationship
Aubrey Plaza’s Parks and Rec alter ego, April Ludgate, found lasting love with Chris Pratt’s Andy Dwyer. But in real life, according to the New York Post, Plaza has been dating screenwriter and director, Jeff Baena since 2011. And Bustle reported that since they started dating, Baena and Plaza have worked together on three films, Life After Beth, Joshy, and The Little Hours. Plaza occasionally posts photos with Baena on her social media pages, and while they don’t share much about their romance, during a joint 2017 interview with IndieWire, Baena gushed over Plaza’s comedic acting ability. He also revealed to Fandor that Plaza sweetly threw him “a secret surprise birthday party” for his 40th in 2017, inviting people he “hadn’t seen in like 15 years.”
Despite being in a relationship with Baena for a decade, Plaza has also been open about her bisexuality. In 2016 she told Advocate, “Girls are into me, that’s no secret. Hey, I’m into them too. I fall in love with girls and guys. I can’t help it.” In 2020, she also played a queer character in the movie Happiest Season and admitted during a December 2020 interview with Stephen Colbert that she wished her character Riley ended up with Kristen Stewart’s character, Abby. And ever since Plaza was open with fans about her sexuality, they’ve shared on social media how happy they are for her.
This Parks and Rec star literally found a lifelong love
Rob Lowe’s character Chris Traeger is literally the most positive TV character of all time, and it seems like Lowe is no different in real life. While he’s been honest about his journey with addiction and sobriety throughout the years, he’s had one constant in his life since 1991, and that’s his wife Sheryl Berkoff. According to Hello!, Berkoff is a makeup artist and jewelry designer. The outlet reported that she and Lowe met in 1983 when they both worked on the movie Bad Influence.
In September 2014, Lowe told Haute Living that meeting Berkoff helped him get his life back on track amid his struggles with addiction. He said, “I had met my now wife, Sheryl, and was attempting my first try at monogamy … It made me examine how I was living my life. That led me to getting sober, which led me to changing my life — giving me everything I now have.”
Lowe and Berkoff have two sons in their 20’s, John and Matthew, and Lowe frequently shares photos with them on social media. And even around 30 years of marriage later, Lowe still gushes over his wife on Instagram. For her birthday in 2020, he wrote “Happy birthday to my amazing, gorgeous partner in crime. You get better every year. Love you, Love Bug. Xo.” How cute!
Adam Scott's kids refuse to watch Parks and Rec
While we wish that Parks and Rec‘s Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt could be together in real life, Adam Scott has actually been with the real Knope to his Wyatt for a long time (don’t worry, he and Amy Poeher are still good friends though). According to Bustle, Adam married producer Naomi Scott in 2005. While Naomi might work behind the camera, she also has some impressive credits like working on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Other People, and The Overnight.
And while Adam and Naomi are married, they’re also business partners. They launched their own production company together called Gettin’ Rad Productions. During a 2015 interview with The Moveable Fest, Naomi revealed why collaborating professionally worked so well for her and Adam. “We’ve been together for a long time, so part of that is our tastes now have blended,” she said, adding, “They were pretty similar to start with, but now the things that make me laugh, make him laugh and vice versa.
Along with being husband and wife and business partners, Adam and Naomi are also parents to two children. Adam frequently shares sweet family photos with them on Instagram. And as Adam and Naomi’s kids have gotten older, they’ve started to appreciate their work more, though in February 2017, Adam told Seth Meyers that they refuse to watch Parks and Rec. They have no idea what they’re missing out on!
Aziz Ansari found love outside the Hollywood scene
A few years after Parks and Rec finished airing, Aziz Ansari was accused of sexual assault. In a 2018 Babe interview, a photographer, who went by the pseudonym Grace, alleged Ansari made unwanted sexual advances by “ignor[ing] clear non-verbal cues” during their date. Ansari addressed the allegations in his 2019 Netflix special saying (via Vox), “There’s times I felt scared, there’s times I felt humiliated, there’s times I felt embarrassed, and ultimately I just felt terrible that this person felt this way.”
Since then, Ansari has been pretty private about his personal life and relationships. According to Distractify, he found romance outside the entertainment industry after this scandal. The outlet reported that Ansari has been linked to scientist Serena Campbell since 2018. The Daily Mail also shared photos of the two of them on a trip to Spain in August 2019. While we don’t know much about their relationship, according to Campbell’s Instagram, which is private, she’s one smart cookie. The Danish scientist lists in her bio a PhD in nanoplasmonics and her LinkedIn page reveals that, as of this writing, she’s a Forensic Data Scientist at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Paul Schneider started a family after leaving Parks and Rec
Paul Schneider famously left Parks and Rec after only two seasons playing Mark Brendanawicz. And while leaving the show earned him the nickname “Mark Brendanaquits” from Leslie Knope, he actually seems really happy in his post-Parks and Rec life.
Schneider married occupational therapist Theresa Avila in April 2016. Despite Avila not being a public figure, she has attended red carpet events with Schneider, and in May 2020, the two welcomed their first child together, Louisa. Schneider and Avila often share sweet photos together on social media with their daughter. Schneider unsurprisingly makes frequent appearances on Avila’s Instagram page as her “Man Crush Monday.” And for Valentine’s Day 2021, Schneider shared this sweet video of their daughter, writing, “Hearts & Smoochies from the Schneider Fam y’all!”
And in case you’re wondering how Schneider feels about Parks and Rec now, well he still shares the occasional Parks throwback photo on social media, so it looks like there’s no hard feelings!
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