Jones also appeared in the films I Love You, Man (2009), The Social Network (2010), Our Idiot Brother (2011), The Muppets (2011), Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012), which she co-wrote, and Tag (2018).

[23] In his autobiography, her father recalled how he would often find the six-year-old Jones under the covers after bedtime, reading five books at a time with a flashlight.

[26] Jones attended The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, California, where she made the National Honor Society and was voted "Most Likely To Succeed" by her classmates.

[23] Jones's parents divorced when she was 14 years old; her sister subsequently remained with their father, while Rashida moved with their mother to Brentwood.

In 1994, Jones garnered attention with an open letter[27] responding to scathing remarks made by rapper Tupac Shakur about her parents' interracial marriage in The Source.

After Jones left Boston Public, she appeared in Death of a Dynasty, directed by Damon Dash, and two episodes of Chappelle's Show on Comedy Central.

In 2004, she was cast in Strip Search, an HBO film directed by Sidney Lumet, but her scenes were cut from the final broadcast version.

Later that year, she played Dr. Rachel Keyes in Little Black Book and starred as Edie Miller in the British drama series NY-LON.

In 2005, Jones played Karen in the Stella pilot on Comedy Central and special government agent Carla Merced in the TNT police drama Wanted.

Jones was considering leaving the acting profession and pursuing a graduate degree in public policy before she was offered the part on The Office.

[36] Jones also played Karen in the February 2007 Saturday Night Live episode hosted by Rainn Wilson, appearing briefly in the opening monologue's Office parody.

She played nurse Ann Perkins from the show's debut until midway through the sixth season, and reprised the role for the final episode of the series.

[41][42] Jones's other 2011 films were Friends with Benefits, starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis; The Big Year, with Steve Martin, Owen Wilson, and Jack Black; The Muppets, with Jason Segel, Amy Adams, and Chris Cooper; and Our Idiot Brother, with Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, and Emily Mortimer.

Through her involvement in Hot Girls Wanted, Jones gathered a negative reputation among sex workers, as they see the film and series as unfairly depicting the industry and as violating performers' consent.

[51][52] Jones voiced the role of Marcy Kappel, a security forces agent of internal affairs, in Blue Sky Studios animation film Spies in Disguise (2019).

In 2016, Jones co-wrote the teleplay of "Nosedive", an episode of the television anthology series Black Mirror with Michael Schur from a story by Charlie Brooker.

[61] Jones contributed a "thank-you note" to Michelle Obama in The New York Times in 2016[62] which was excerpted in the 2017 book Courage Is Contagious.

Jones left the writing assignment early due to feeling that Pixar is "a culture where women and people of color do not have an equal creative voice".

[65][66][67] Jones co-wrote the pilot episode of the Hulu mystery thriller series The Other Black Girl, a television adaptation of the 2021 novel by Zakiya Dalila Harris.

[69] On December 12, 2024 it was announced that Jones is writing a script for an animated Tom and Jerry feature film along with Will McCormack and Michael Govier.

She appears on the tracks "Tangled", "Secret", and "Not Coming Home" from their debut record, Songs About Jane, and on "Kiwi" from the follow-up album It Won't Be Soon Before Long.

Jones also contributed vocals on the song "Dick Starbuck: Porno Detective" on The High & Mighty's 1999 debut Home Field Advantage.

She sang in some episodes of Boston Public and for charitable events such as the What A Pair Benefit in 2002 to raise money for breast cancer research.

[75] Jones has also appeared in music videos for The Boy Least Likely To song "Be Gentle With Me", and the Foo Fighters' single "Long Road to Ruin".

She starred in Funny or Die's Speak Out series with Natalie Portman[78] and guest-starred in two episodes in the first webseason Web Therapy with Lisa Kudrow.

In 2008, Jones appeared with several other celebrities in Prop 8 – The Musical, an all-star video satirising California's anti-gay marriage initiative, written by Marc Shaiman.

Jones appeared as part of the ensemble in a series of musical television commercials for the clothing retailer The Gap, in the nineties.

[93] Jones has participated in Stand Up to Cancer events, EDUN and ONE: The Campaign to Make Poverty History, and The Art of Elysium's volunteer program, which runs artistic workshops for hospitalized children.

Jones campaigned for Democratic candidate John Kerry during the 2004 election, speaking at student rallies and a public gallery in Ohio.

In 2008, along with Kristen Bell, she visited college campuses in Missouri to discuss the candidates and to encourage voter registration for the Democratic Party.