On April 7, the night before the Season 3 finale of Apple TV smash hit series Shrinking, PaleyFest LA hosted an intimate panel discussion at the Dolby Theatre moderated by the show’s creator, Bill Lawrence, and featuring stars Jason Segel, Harrison Ford, Christa Miller, Jessica Williams, Luke Tennie, Lukita Maxwell, Ted McGinley, and Michael Urie, with surprise special guest Michael J. Fox.
At the red carpet prior to the panel, I chatted with Segel, Tennie, and Urie about their characters’ journeys this season and what fans can look forward to for Season 4.
The center of the show each season has been Jimmy’s (Segel) difficult journey back to himself following the death of his wife, Tia (Lilan Bowden). In Season 3, we see him turn a corner and start dating Sofi (Cobie Smulders). So what would the world of Shrinking look like if Jimmy was finally happy? Segel responded, “I think that trying to be happy is its own set of issues and complications. My life is really good, but I still go through it. I still have a hard time even just figuring out how to settle into happiness. So I actually think trying to be happy is an interesting storyline.”
Sean (Tennie) is nearly unrecognizable now from the angry young veteran we met at the beginning of the series. After putting in the work with years of therapy from Jimmy and Paul (Ford), we now see him move into a brand new career and apartment, and rekindle a romance with his first love, Marisol (Isabella Gomez). When asked what areas of Sean’s development he hopes to explore next season, Tennie commented, “He still seems to have this struggle around needing consistency and what happens when there’s a wrench in the plans. We see a little bit of that with the club scene this season and how he has to learn that it’s okay to let go of the schedule a little bit. I want to explore that a little more, as well as his relationship. It started off pretty tumultuous and there’s a lot to unpack there.”
For Brian (Urie), this season was all about becoming a new father and learning to compromise with his husband, Charlie (Devin Kawaoka). The season finale sees the two of them preparing to spend three months in Tennessee for Charlie’s job, which means being away from their village for the first time as parents. Reflecting on where this might lead for the couple, Urie said, “I would love to see more of what happens when Brian and Charlie are parenting without the rest of the team. Devon is a really wonderful person. And his character is so calming. Brian is lucky to have all these great friends in his life, free therapy, and then this amazing partner who keeps his feet on the ground. And who knows what baby Sutton is going to be like next season? We could time jump all the way to adulthood.”
Following the red carpet, the audience was treated to a special screening of the Season 3 finale episode “And That’s Our Time,” which would premiere the next day. There were several big moments of laughter and tears shared by the entire theater throughout the emotional rollercoaster of the episode as we saw Alice (Maxwell) leave for college, Gaby (Williams) propose to Derrick (Damon Wayans Jr.), and Jimmy and Paul have a long overdue heart-to-heart as Paul helps push Jimmy into his next chapter.
(Photo courtesy of Apple TV)
Creator and showrunner Bill Lawrence then introduced each member of the cast to kick off the panel discussion, diving into the incredible character work of each actor and the nuances of what makes the show so special. Especially poignant was Ford’s response when asked about how he approaches the responsibility of playing a character with Parkinson’s. Ford said, “With a combination of ambition and pure terror. Because I really don’t want to minimize the realities of the disease and the immense toll that this disease takes…It’s a delicate thing.”
Earlier this season, the show brought on Lawrence’s longtime friend and colleague Michael J. Fox as Gerry, a friend of Paul’s who also has Parkinson’s. Fox himself has been living with Parkinson’s for over thirty years, becoming a major activist for the disease and raising over $2.5 billion through The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. This made the evening at PaleyFest all the more special when Lawrence brought Fox on stage as a surprise to conclude the night. When asked if he would be willing to come back for Season 4, Fox said “Absolutely yes, I’d love to.”
Shrinking Season 3 is now streaming in full on Apple TV.
