Shrinking

Shrinking is created by Brett Goldstein and Bill Lawrence, who also produce the Apple TV+ hit comedy Ted Lasso. It stars Jason Segel as James Laird, a therapist ...

[Apple TV+ show guide](http://Apple TV+ Guide: Every Apple TV show and movie available now). (The new series of Ted Lasso will also likely premiere during the run of Shrinking.) Apple TV+ costs $6.99 per month, and is available as part of the Apple One subscription bundle. Then, new episodes will automatically appear in the Up Next row, when they come out. Paul Rhodes, elevating the star power of the show further. It stars Jason Segel as James Laird, a therapist who has pretty much given up on life following the death of his wife.

Shrinking stars Harrison Ford and Jason Segel as a pair of diametrically opposed therapists. The endearing new comedy series premieres January 27 on Apple ...

At its best, the series is able to do what all great TV dramedies should, which is smoothly shift between moments of comfort, heartbreak, and humor all within the span of a few seconds. By the time the series has reached its layered, emotionally complicated ninth episode, Shrinking has already earned its place as one of the more impressive ensemble comedies that have premiered in recent months. The series is an ambitious and emotionally resonant dramedy that isn’t afraid to let its characters be as messy as possible. While its transition toward a looser narrative structure does result in its central premise — Jimmy’s reckless new therapy tactics — essentially falling by the wayside, the adoption of a more leisurely pace gives Shrinking the chance to become a true ensemble comedy. Both of those problems are solved when Gaby and Liz become friends around halfway through Shrinking’s first season, which allows both Williams and Miller to establish a comedic dynamic together that is among the show’s best. Here, Ford is just as gruff and sarcastic as ever, but he’s also allowed to be silly and heartfelt in ways that he’s rarely been given the chance to be on-screen before. However, there are moments of brilliance scattered throughout Shrinking’s uneven initial episodes, and it doesn’t take long for the series to start to emerge as the first truly great ensemble TV comedy of the year. His daughter, Alice (Lukita Maxwell), has been so thoroughly abandoned by her father in the year since her mom’s death that she’s essentially turned to Miller’s Liz to provide the parental supervision Jimmy hasn’t. Jimmy’s mentor and boss, Paul (Harrison Ford), meanwhile, has already been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease by the time Shrinking’s premiere begins. Shrinking’s messy premiere episode follows Jimmy as he decides to finally break out of his own cycle of drugs and general cynicism. Across its first nine episodes, the [Apple TV+ series](https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/new-on-apple-tv-plus/) runs headfirst into the difficult emotional terrain of its story with the same playful spirit that has, for better or worse, come to define many of Lawrence’s previous TV efforts, including Scrubs, Cougar Town, and yes, Ted Lasso. By the time Shrinking begins, Jimmy’s self-destructive coping methods have become so repetitive that his next-door neighbor, Liz (Christa Miller), reacts to him partying loudly in his backyard at 3 a.m.

Shrinking is the latest Apple TV+ comedy and it's cast is star-studded. Here is where you've seen them before.

These include the [medical comedy Scrubs ](https://www.cinemablend.com/television/2547119/the-best-scrubs-episodes-ranked)(whom Bill Lawrence also created), Head of the Class and Clone High. Miller has been in a few movies, including Kiss & Tell, The Operator, Hot Air, and Breaking In, but she’s mainly used a lot of her talents on television. He had a main role in Mode After Hours, as well as Partners. Next up on the Shrinking cast list is Michael Urie, who has the privilege of playing Brian in the new Apple TV+ series. Urie has also appeared in several movies, including He’s Way More Famous Than You, the hilarious modern Christmas movie, Single All The Way, and in the [the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2550823/the-biggest-issues-some-harry-potter-fans-have-with-the-fantastic-beasts-movies), where she’s portrayed Lally Hicks in both Crimes of Grindelwald and Secrets of Dumbledore. He’s also appeared in a few television shows as well. Moving on, we take a look at Jessica Williams, who plays Gabby in the new show, another therapist who works with Jimmy. Segel is primarily known for his starring role in the Besides that, he’s appeared in many non-franchise movies as well, such as The Conversation, The Mosquito Coast, American Graffiti, The Age of Adaline, Random Hearts and more. Segel has also starred in several comedic films, including Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Knocked Up, Bad Teacher, Gulliver’s Travels, The Five-Year Engagement and The Muppets. [starring Harrison Ford](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/harrison-ford-had-one-question-before-agreeing-to-join-bill-lawrences-shrinking-on-apple-tv) and Jason Segel, documents the life of a therapist who is suffering from grief after losing his wife – and one day, he decides to just let it all go and tell his clients what he really feels about their issues.

Jason Segel's grieving therapist isn't likeable enough to carry this directionless dramedy. Shrinking Apple TV TV Still Jason Segel as Jimmy and Harrison ...

Everyone in the show seems willing to give Jimmy a second, third or umpteenth chance to redeem himself but based on these first two episodes, viewers might not be so accommodating. As a result, he decides to go rogue and tell them what he really thinks, proudly declaring himself “a psychological vigilante” (a move that I imagine actual therapists may be overturning their couches at). [Ted Lasso](https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/ted-lasso-apple-tv-jason-sudeikis-interview-football-577492)), Brett Goldstein (Ted Lasso’s infamously gruff Roy Kent) and Jason Segel who here plays the lead role of Jimmy, a middle-aged man who has gone off the rails with grief after the death of his wife.