 " The Set Up " was directed by Troy Miller and written by Katie Dippold . It featured guest appearances by Will Arnett as MRI technologist Chris and Justin Theroux as Ann 's lawyer friend Justin , Arnett is the real @-@ life husband of Amy Poehler , who plays protagonist Leslie Knope . It was not Poehler who arranged for him to be on the show , but rather Parks and Recreation co @-@ creator Michael Schur , who is a good friend of Arnett and felt he would be a good fit for the character . Their date scenes marked the second on @-@ screen pairing between a Parks and Recreation actor and their real @-@ life spouse ; Megan Mullally , the wife of actor Nick Offerman , guest starred as Ron Swanson 's ex @-@ wife Tammy in the episode , " Ron and Tammy " . Although Theroux was slated to make appearances in multiple Parks and Recreation episodes , Arnett was scheduled to appear only in " The Set Up " . " The Set Up " also marked the first of several recurring appearances by Ben Schwartz as Tom 's friend Jean @-@ Ralphio Saperstein . Schur said the character was invented because the Parks and Recreation staff liked the actor and tried to find a way to work him into the show . 
