Nick Offerman Shares How Willie Nelson Helped Shape Ron Swanson While on Set of ‘Parks and Recreation’

While working in Hollywood since the 1990s, Nick Offerman starred in hit shows like Fargo, Pam & Tommy, The Last of Us, and even The Lego Movie franchise. Although the actor continues to share his talents with the world, his most-recognized role to date was as Ron Swanson in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation. Throughout his time on the show, he not only received a Television Critics Association Award, but he seemed to encompass his character. Discussing his time on Parks and Recreation, Offerman shared some insight into the music his character loved to listen to. 

Given Ron’s nature during the series, he often found himself listening to music to drown out the noise around him. While it is never clearly stated what Ron listened to during these moments, Offerman gave some insight when he appeared on the One By Willie podcast. He said,  “In my show Parks and Recreation, which I’m probably best known for, my character, Ron Swanson—there was a few times across the series where they would have me listening to something on headphones, and they would ask me what it would be. And the show creator, Mike Schur, and I agreed that it would be Willie Nelson. And for this specific episode late in the series… it’s a very unique episode. It’s like a one-act play between me and the lead of the show, Amy Poehler.”

[Don’t Miss Willie Nelson Live In Concert]

Nick Offerman Details How Willie Nelson Helped ‘Parks and Rec’

With Willie Nelson helping shape Offerman’s understanding of the character, the singer continued to play a role throughout the series. The actor admitted the production used Nelson’s “Buddy” during a feud between Ron and Amy Poehler’s Leslie Knope. “As we’re kind of making up and making friends again, ‘Buddy’ —Willie Nelson’s ‘Buddy’ is the soundtrack, is the song that plays over that. And I mean, listening to it again, in preparation for this podcast, just really wells up a lot of emotions for me, because it’s so simple. Willie’s emotional songs, for me, are the most effective when they’re just quiet and simple. Another song that we use in the show is ‘Hello Walls.’”

[RELATED: Willie Nelson “Keeps on Giving” With Hilarious Images from Movie With Kris Kristofferson]

Praising not just the series and showrunner, Offerman also honored Nelson for bringing the moment to life. He added, “He has such a gentle, sort of even banal, way of communicating the incredible emotional depth of loneliness, or of heartbreak. And so that song, laid over this incredible episode of our show, was just really evocative.”

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(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)