Whatever Happened To Aziz Ansari After Parks And Recreation Ended?
Over six years, from 2009 to 2015, a little show called "Parks and Recreation" managed to grow from a riff on "The Office" to a multiple Emmy-nominated beloved hit. Its ensemble cast of talented comedians and actors collaborated to create an upbeat, compelling world where local politics could feel like high drama and flawed characters could be ultimately redeemed. Through it all, viewers even learned a bit about the American government.
That cast, of course, went on to achieve great things after the show ended, with Chris Pratt even going on to star in major Hollywood franchises such as "Jurassic World" and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Aubrey Plaza, who played April Ludgate on the show, now plays witchy pranks on co-stars in "The White Lotus." And even Retta, who played Donna, went on to star as Ruby Hill on NBC's "Good Girls." But what happened to Aziz Ansari, who charmed viewers as the show's self-involved, ridiculous, and ultimately lovable Tom Haverford? Here's what Ansari has been up to since "Parks and Recreation" went off the air.
Master of None offered new insight into Ansari's life
After receiving critical praise and widespread recognition for his role as the hyper-self-confident entrepreneur Tom Haverford, Aziz Ansari succeeded further in Hollywood. In 2015, shortly after "Parks and Recreation" went off the air, Ansari published his first book, "Modern Romance," and began starring in his own Netflix original series, "Master of None."
The show, which followed Dev, a Tamil Muslim, and commercial actor, had many parallels to Ansari's own life. Like Dev, Ansari was also raised as a Tamil Muslim in a first-generation Indian family. Furthermore, the series attracted instant critical success. For its first season, it received four Emmy nominations, including one for Best Comedy Series and a Best Actor nomination for Ansari.
Adding to that outstanding showing, Ansari and his co-creator Alan Yang took home an Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series (via Emmys.com). But unfortunately, Ansari's success with the series was about to hit a significant roadblock.
Ansari faced accusations of sexual misconduct in 2018
The years following "Master of None"'s debut were highly successful for Ansari, even landing him a hosting gig on "Saturday Night Live" in 2017. In fulfilling his role, he became the first person of South Asian origin to ever host the long-running comedy series (via NBC News). But one year later, in January 2018, Ansari found himself at the center of a #MeToo scandal.
In that January, a woman under the pseudonym "Grace" appeared in an article on the tabloid website Babe.net accusing Ansari of sexual misconduct. According to "Grace," the two went on a date in September 2017; however, Grace later felt pressured by Ansari to have sex with him. And while there was much disagreement in the media as to whether Babe.net had adhered to journalistic standards (it hadn't) and as to whether Grace had granted "affirmative consent" to Ansari (via Time), Ansari nevertheless faced major public scrutiny in the weeks following the article's publication. As a result, he retreated from the public eye for the following year.
Ansari recently resumed his stand-up career
Eventually, in February 2019, Ansari rebooted his career with a new stand-up tour called "The Road to Nowhere." The tour directly responded to his past year out of the limelight and featured material about sexual misconduct, racism, and cultural appropriation. Ansari then followed up the tour with the stand-up special "Aziz Ansari: Right Now," which premiered on Netflix on July 9, 2019. He also released the special "Aziz Ansari: Nightclub Comedian" on January 25, 2022.
At this point, Ansari seemed to be on a roll and was about to make his directorial debut with the film "Being Mortal." Unfortunately, Ansari faced another career obstacle in April 2022 when Searchlight Pictures suspended production on the film. Allegedly, the film's star, Bill Murray, had engaged in inappropriate behavior on set (via Deadline). However, while the film has not resumed production yet, there's certainly interest. Keke Palmer, who also stars in the movie, recently told Variety that she'd like Ansari to continue production, albeit without Bill Murray. Still, she acknowledged that this would require a significant rewrite.
That doesn't mean Ansari had a terrible 2022 overall, though. He provided the voice of Darryl in the most recent season of "Bob's Burgers," and even lent his voice to "The Bob's Burgers Movie" (via IMDB). And until he figures out what to do about "Being Mortal," fans can always resort to watching old clips of him on "Parks and Recreation."