Michael Urie on the ‘cathartic’ ‘Shrinking’ and Harrison Ford: ‘He comes from comedy’ [Exclusive Video Interview]

Christopher Rosen
Updated ·5 min read
2
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

When Harrison Ford signed on for the Apple TV+ series “Shrinking,” the 80-year-old actor made some personal history: the show, from co-creators Bill Lawrence, Brett Goldstein and Jason Segel, marks the first time Ford starred on a television comedy series. But while some outside observers expressed surprise to see Ford try his hand at an unfamiliar genre at this point in his career, “Shrinking” co-star Michael Urie knew the “Star Wars” legend would be just fine.

“There were people who were like, ‘Is he going to be funny?’ And I just want to be like, ‘Are you crazy?’ Han Solo is a comedy. Indiana Jones is a comedy. Everything we know about him stems from these two funny characters,” Urie tells Gold Derby in an exclusive video interview. “Yes, he did these very serious movies. But he comes from comedy. You do put Harrison Ford in Star Wars and he was funny. I knew he could be funny. That was not a surprise to me.”

More from GoldDerby

But Urie, a comedy pro best known for his breakout turn on “Ugly Betty,” said working with Ford still left him with some unexpected insights – particularly with regard to how Ford interacts with the camera. “I was aware of his timing, I was aware of his crankiness, I could put all of that together. But what I didn’t know, is the way in which he crafted it,” Urie says of his co-star’s process. 

SEEEmmy Experts slugfest: Will ‘Beef’ and ‘Shrinking’ serve up nominations?

He remembers a scene where he and Ford were seated at a table and Urie’s character had the opening line. “He was like, ‘Could you just delay it for a second?’ And what I realized when I watched the episode back was, he knew where the camera was. And he gave the camera this whole moment, before the scene started, where he was lost in thought, kind of adrift. And he gave it only to the camera,” Urie says. “Then I speak and he’s taken out of it. And it was this beautiful moment that started the scene that he crafted right there with the camera. I learned more from that moment than from four years of being on a TV show in front of a camera. He just gets it. He just knows what it’s seeing. That’s so brilliant. It’s just amazing. And it’s awesome.”

That’s the way many fans would describe “Shrinking” too. The Apple comedy debuted in late January to strong reviews and has grown in buzz during the ensuing weeks – up to its surprising season finale last week. The 10-episode show is focused on a therapist named Jimmy (Segel) who has spent the last year in a downward spiral following the death of his wife. Ford and Jessica Williams are fellow therapists who work with Jimmy; Urie plays Brian, Jimmy’s best friend, who hasn’t seen his pal in a year. In keeping with Lawrence’s previous shows like “Ted Lasso” and “Scrubs,” “Shrinking” is a comedy that mines pathos out of messy emotions and feelings. Apple has already ordered Season 2.

“What I loved about the show from the very beginning was how the grief was treated with such care and humor,” Urie says. “I’m the kind of person who will make a joke at a funeral. And I because I think that people who have passed and who have gone, the last thing that they would want is for us not to laugh anymore and not remember the joy of their lives.”

Urie’s audition for “Shrinking” was a scene in the second episode when Brian reconnects with Jimmy. The friends drifted apart after the death of Jimmy’s wife because of Brian’s relentless optimism: the character is prone to saying, “Everything goes my way.” 

“Jimmy says, ‘I couldn’t be around somebody who says, ‘Everything goes my way,’ when my wife has just died. And then I say, ‘I never said everything goes your way,’ which is so inappropriate,” Urie says of the unexpected punchline. “But it’s also hilarious and exactly what they needed to defuse the tension. It was the apology, it was the admission, it was the truth. And that was when I was like, ‘This is good stuff.’ This is how I deal with grief. This is how I think a lot of people deal with grief. And I think this is a very healthy thing to show people to put out into the world. And my sense from how people have been receiving the show is that it’s very cathartic for people that there’s a comedy about grief.”

All episodes of “Shrinking” are available now on Apple TV+.

PREDICT the 2023 Emmy nominees through July 12

Make your predictions at Gold Derby now. Download our free and easy app for Apple/iPhone devices or Android (Google Play) to compete against legions of other fans plus our experts and editors for best prediction accuracy scores. See our latest prediction champs. Can you top our esteemed leaderboards next? Always remember to keep your predictions updated because they impact our latest racetrack odds, which terrify Hollywood chiefs and stars. Don’t miss the fun. Speak up and share your huffy opinions in our famous forums where 5,000 showbiz leaders lurk every day to track latest awards buzz. Everybody wants to know: What do you think? Who do you predict and why?

SIGN UP for Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions

Best of GoldDerby

Sign up for Gold Derby's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.