‘Parks and Recreation’ season 5: ‘The Closer’ alum set to play…

Thanks in part to the “30 Rock” series finale last week, it feels like it has been quite a while since a new episode of “Parks and Recreation” season 5. However, we now know more than ever that there are going to be some major reasons to celebrate courtesy of some brand-new casting scoop that is going to help to show off a brand new side of Ben.

According to a report from Entertainment Weekly, “The Closer” alum J.K. Simmons is going to be guest-starring on an upcoming episode of the hit NBC comedy, where he will be playing the part of the Mayor of Partridge, Minnesota. So what in the world does this have to do with Pawnee? As you may recall, Ben is from the land of 10,000 lakes … and he also happened to hold this title himself at age 18 until he was impeached.

When “Parks and Recreation” does return to TV on Thursday, it is going to be doing so following up the season 4 premiere of “Community” rather than the long-running show starring Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin. Are we going to see Ben marry Leslie by the end of this season? That is to be seen, but you can certainly expect there to be plenty of drama when it comes to the planning process.

As for Simmons, this is a reunion of sorts with Adam Scott, as the two did appear together on the brilliant-but-canceled series “Party Down.” His recent comedy credits also include “Men at Work,” and he does also do a great deal of voice actor work.

What do you think about this casting news? Be sure to share some more of your thoughts below, and you can check out the brand-new Super Bowl commercial featuring Amy Poehler over at the link here.

Photo: NBC