Quick Links
Therapists in movies and television, much like doctors and other medical professionals, are often treated as narrative devices in stories rather than characters with their own thoughts, emotions, and desires. That's because that is exactly how many everyday people see their therapists or psychologists, as patients seek their advice and answers for whatever they may be troubled by. It's easy to forget that, outside their professional lives treating people with complex trauma and mental health issues, these medical professionals are also people too, and even they can have their own opinions and biases that they keep to themselves when treating a patient. This begs two questions that may come to mind to someone seeking therapy - what is this therapist really thinking and what if they said what they're really thinking?
Those are questions that the upcoming comedy series Shrinking (2023) will attempt to answer. Created by Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) writer and star Jason Segel and Ted Lasso (2020-) writers Bill Lawrence and Brett Goldstein, the ten-episode comedy series follows Segel himself as a therapist currently going through his own personal mental health issue and trauma who has decided to give his patients a more straightforward approach to psychiatric care. Essentially what that means is Segel's character is taking a page out of Dr. Ben Sobel's (Billy Crystal) book from Analyze This (1999) and telling his patients his own personal opinions instead of trying to take an objective, educational approach. It's a bold strategy with a laundry list of both pros and cons, and only time will tell if this new strategy is a productive experiment or a destructive disaster.
With two legendary actors leading the series and a trio of accomplished comedic writers at the helm, Shrinking is already sounding like an extremely promising series. To find out everything we know so far about Shrinking, simply read below to find out.
Watch the Trailer for Shrinking
The first trailer for Shrinking is very much a teaser, not showing any footage from the actual series. Instead, we get various people, presumably patients of Segel's character, jumping up and down on a trampoline with various facial expressions on their faces. Joining Segel on the bouncy device are characters played by Jessica Williams, Lukita Maxwell (Generation), Christa Miller (Scrubs), Michael Urie (Ugly Betty), and Luke Tennie (Players). When Segel stops bouncing, suddenly a wild Harrison Ford joins him on screen, giving a dismissive look to Segel before walking off to the left of the frame.
The second trailer for Shrinking dives much deeper into the film's main plot and the personal struggles that James Laird (Jason Segal) is going through. Not only is he dealing with the struggles of grief and has the duties of being a single daughter to his daughter Alice (Lukita Maxwell), but he's also trapped in a mundane cycle where he has to give emotionless and objective advice to his therapy patients. That's until one day when he's meeting a patient played by Heidi Gardner (Saturday Night Live), who's effectively telling James that she is in an abusive relationship but still loves her husband anyway. This finally causes James to snap and be brutally honest with his patients, looking for ways to treat their depression and trauma in ways that aren't considered orthodox.
Where Is Shrinking Streaming?
Given that the series is coming from two of the major creative minds of one of the streamer's most successful shows, it makes sense that Bill Lawrence and Brett Goldstein would choose Apple TV+ as the streaming home for Shrinking. Whether or not this will be another feel-good romp like Ted Lasso is still a mystery, but the two being involved is more than enough to get fans of comedic television interested.
What Is the Release Date for Shrinking (and How Many Episodes Are There)?
Apple TV+ subscribers can schedule an appointment to see Shrinking on Friday, January 27th, 2023, which is when the first two episodes of the ten-episode series will officially premiere on the streamer. The rest of the ten episodes will premiere weekly every following Friday with the season finale premiering on Friday, March 24th, 2023.
What Is the Plot of Shrinking?
The official plot synopsis for Shrinking reads as follows:
A grieving therapist starts to tell his clients exactly what he thinks. Ignoring his training and ethics, he finds himself making huge changes to people's lives - including his own.
Segel's therapist has likely spent the entirety of his professional career as a therapist telling people exactly what he was taught when he was in school studying psychology, and his rejection of those ideas will lead to very serious consequences. Positive outcomes could include being brutally honest with his patients, so they see the world in a new life, but being too harsh to people with a potentially delicate state of mind could lead to more harm than good. Though we don't know all the details about Segel's character, most notably the name of the person, we do know that Harrison Ford's character is also a doctor by the name of Phil Rhodes, potentially a mentor figure to Segel's protagonist who isn't as keen on the new treatment methods he's implementing in his attempt to grieve for the whoever he lost.
Who Is Making Shrinking?
In addition to starring in the series, Jason Segel is also co-creating and writing the new series. Segel is joined by two of the biggest names in the comedic television world with Ted Lasso creator Bill Lawrence and Ted Lasso writer and star Brett Goldstein. James Ponsoldt (The Spectacular Now) is set to direct at least one episode of the ten-episode series. Ry Russo-Young (Before I Fall) will also be serving as a director on the series. All four of the creative personalities will also be executive producing Shrinking along with Neil Goldman (Community), Jeff Ingold (Ted Lasso), and Liza Katzer (Ted Lasso).
Other creative lead positions are filled by production designer Cabot McMullen (Designated Survivor), art director Judy Cosgrove (Cougar Town), and costume designer Allyson B. Fanger (Fantasy Island).
Who Is Starring in Shrinking?
Jason Segal will be taking on the lead role of the honest-to-a-fault therapist protagonist. The star and creative mind behind such film hits as Forgetting Sarah Marshall and The Muppets (2011) has his roots implanted well within the television world, such as his major role in the Emmy-winning sitcom How I Met Your Mother (2005-2014). A newcomer to serialized television humor is, however, Harrison Ford. Ford of course is best known for his iconic roles as Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Han Solo in Star Wars (1977), and many more. He's set to make his debut as a leading performer in a series with the highly anticipated Yellowstone (2018-) spin-off, 1923 (2022-), later this December, but Shrinking will mark the first comedic television series he'll have a series regular role for.
As mentioned above, the cast will also feature Jessica Williams, Lukita Maxwell, Christa Miller, Michael Urie, and Luke Tennie. Also, part of the cast is Tilky Jones (The Guardian), Roslyn Luke (The Rookie), and Matt Knudsen (Key and Peele).