“This is supposed to be a funny show!”

Parks and Rec star details Adam Scott’s unusual ritual after flubbing a line — and the costar who mocked him for it

"This is supposed to be a funny show!"

By Ryan Coleman

Ryan Coleman

Ryan Coleman is a news writer for with previous work in MUBI Notebook, Slant, and the LA Review of Books.

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December 26, 2025 12:30 p.m. ET

Adam Scott on 'Parks and Recreation'. Credit:

Colleen Hayes/NBCU via getty

- Jay Jackson, who played *Parks and Recreation*'s beloved TV journalist Perd Hapley, recalls Adam Scott as an "intense" scene partner who had an unusual ritual after a flubbed line.

- During a scene with Scott and Aziz Ansari, Jackson recalls that, "Whenever he'd mess up a line, and they'd stop, he would go do 25, 30 push-ups."

- Jackson says that he "respected" Scott's "craft," but it was hard to get on his level with Ansari making light of the push-up breaks "with an eye roll."

All actors have their rituals. this one from Adam Scott is just a bit intense.

Jay Jackson, who played *Parks and Recreation*'s resident reporter and fan-favorite eccentric Perd Hapley across six seasons, tells ** about the first time he saw Scott flub a line — and the drastic measures he took to regain his composure.

"I think the one that we had the most trouble time-wise and [in terms of] breaking for me was a scene with Adam Scott and Aziz Ansari and I. Aziz asked, 'Is there a bird in here?' and we kept cracking up."

Jackson was new to the show. New to acting, really, having previously spent 22 years as a real broadcast journalist for KCAL 9 Los Angeles, a CBS affiliate. While he enjoyed cutting up with Ansari, he also began to understand that "Adam is a really intense actor. On the set, he is no nonsense... So whenever he'd mess up a line and they'd stop, he would go do 25, 30 push-ups."

Adam Scott and Jay Jackson on 'Parks and Recreation'.

Danny Feld/NBCU via getty

"I guess it was to get his mind focused? Or I don't know if it was punishment or something like that," Jackson ventures. "But then he'd come back and do the scene to get his mind right." Jackson says he marveled at the sight, so far from anything he'd experienced in the field on what he calls the "death and destruction beat" (crime and disaster story coverage).

"So here I am, a TV news reporter, not serious about acting, not understanding how serious this is to these, you know, craftspeople, who spent their lives learning this in college and in plays. They really love it, but I'm not appreciating it yet. I see this guy is serious, so I'm like, 'Okay, I need to respect his craft,'" he shares.

Jackson solemnly swears, "I'm respectful of a person's craft. I'm not looking at him, saying, 'Ah, man, he was just some kind of highbrow freak.' I'm not that kind of person. So I get serious, I'm trying to get serious." But Ansari didn't make that easy.

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"Adam flubbed the line a couple of times. It wasn't anything serious, but he got serious during the push-ups. Whenever it would happen, Aziz would go, 'Oh boy, here come the push-ups,'" Jackson recalls. "He wouldn't say it out loud, you know, but with an eye roll. I wouldn't try to break it up or laugh because I'm the new guy. I'm not trying to bring too much attention to myself, because these are the stars of the show."

Looking back at his time on *Parks*, which expanded by popular demand from a memorable appearance on the season 2 episode "Practice Date" to over 30 episodes straight through to the seventh and final season, Jackson says this moment "stands out" for "how serious Adam was about the scene. And this is supposed to be a funny show!"****

Adam Scott as Ben Wyatt and Aziz Ansari as Tom Haverford on 'Parks and Recreation'.

Colleen Hayes/NBCU via getty

Scott is indeed known for his dedication to his craft, making it no surprise that he's gone on to acclaim and even Emmy nominations for his performance in the Apple TV drama *Severance*.

Ansari has reminisced on his time working with Scott, too, and has relayed stories of what a joy Scott could be to work with. In October, Ansari made an appearance on *Parks *costar Amy Poehler's new podcast, *Good Hang*, where he recounted "the hardest scene I've ever had to film in my entire acting career."

While trying to get through a crude line on the season 4 episode "Born and Raised," Ansari recalled that he and Scott kept breaking so frequently to crack up that they made an unprecedented request.

"This is the only time I think this ever happened on *Parks* or anything, where me and Adam were like, 'Let's just film the rest of the stuff, and we'll come back to that. We'll just come back to the [line],' because we couldn't do it."**

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