‘Parks and Recreation’ Star Chris Pratt Was “Breaking S**t” to Save Show

While NBC’s political satire sitcom Parks and Recreation has become a staple of modern media and a comfort rewatch for audiences of all generations, it wasn’t always such a hit. In a brand-new book commemorating the glory days of Pawnee, Andy Dwyer actor Chris Pratt recalls the drastic and often destructive measures he took in order to prevent the show’s cancellation — involving surprisingly in-character decisions.

The idea of becoming the prop department’s worst nightmare wasn’t a Chris Pratt original, however, as Parks and Recreation actor and longtime comedian Jim O’Heir reveals in Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and Parks and Recreation. “You have to remember, the show was always on the bubble, it felt like we were fighting for our jobs,” Pratt describes in the book, “[such] that my friend just told me, ‘You just have to go in there and start breaking s—. People love to see stuff get broken. If you’re going to get canceled, just go down swinging.” Coincidentally, Pratt’s character in the show was already well on his way to becoming the lovable goofball type, which fans seemed to enjoy. At the end of the day, transforming Andy Dwyer’s careless mishaps into cartoonish clumsiness became a no-brainer if it meant saving the show.

Pratt first introduced his destructive nature in season two, episode seven — which is the first episode to feature the dastardly prankster Greg Pikitis, aka the sworn enemy of Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler). “On that episode, I took a glass, smashed it on the wall, it broke a sign,” Pratt recalled. “The kid who played Greg Pikitis, he kind of broke and laughed, which was on camera … and then I started just making s— up, and it ended up being funny and it made the episode.” Although the success of such a daring stint relied at least partially on the element of surprise, it also required some quick-thinking comedic skill on Pratt’s part. And it was ultimately a success — Pratt’s penchant for destruction became an integral part of his character for the remainder of the show.

The Enduring Legacy of ‘Parks and Recreation’

Thanks to the explosive popularity of streaming services, Parks and Recreation has more than earned its place among other beloved sitcoms like The Office and Arrested Development. But during its original run in the late 2000s, the series seemed to be perpetually on the verge of cancellation — or, as showrunner Michael Shur puts it, “Every year, we got to the end of the season, and we didn’t know if we were coming back.” With this perspective, it’s no wonder that Pratt resorted to such desperate measures as Hulk-smashing prop pieces in an attempt to save the show. And while the overall effectiveness of Pratt’s hijinks remains unclear, Parks and Recreation still managed to persist for seven seasons, far longer than anyone on the show could’ve imagined.

As for Pratt, he’s certainly come a long way since his set-breaking days, from joining the MCU to racking up voice acting roles. His sci-fi thriller Mercy will hit theaters in August 2025, and Pratt will appear in a Russo Brothers-directed Netflix film just a few months prior. In the meantime, Parks and Recreation is currently streaming on Peacock and Prime Video.