Amidst the horror, annoyance and division of the current world viral crisis, there have been glimmers of hope and joy. And here comes another positive response to the pandemic, a return for the Parks And Recreation cast.
The beloved cult sitcom, which starred the likes of Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Adam Scott, Rob Lowe, Jim O’Heir and Retta, and went off the air in 2015, focused on the Parks department of a small Indiana town, led by dedicated public servant Leslie Knope. It was warm. It was funny. And it spawned a whole world of memes and catchphrases.
This new, stand-alone scripted special was brought together by show co-creator Mike Schur, who decided to do something good and knew he had quite the contacts list to draw from. "Like a lot of other people, we were looking for ways to help and felt that bringing these characters back for a night could raise some money," Schur says in a statement. "I sent a hopeful email to the cast and they all got back to me within 45 minutes. Our old Parks And Rec team has put together one more 30-minute slice of (quarantined) Pawnee life and we hope everyone enjoys it. And donates!"
Schur and the cast aim to raise funds for Feeding America, which helps food banks in securing resources. Sponsors plus the writers and cast are matching donations up to $500,000 until 21 May.
One question for Brits is, when and where the special might screen. Parks showed on Dave in the UK and is currently on Prime Video and Now TV, so fingers crossed.