How Michael J. Fox avoided 'easy copout' with 'Shrinking' role Erin Jensen, USA TODAYJanuary 27, 2026 at 11:33 PM 0 A new but familiar face will appear in the third season of "Shrinking," Apple TV's slice of life dramedy about a trio of therapists and their loved ones moving through the world. Jimmy (Jason Segel), who is raising his teenage daughter while grieving the loss of his wife, works alongside Gaby (Jessica Williams), who's growing restless at the practice owned by Paul (Harrison Ford). Michael J. Fox appears on three episodes as Gerry, who like Paul, has Parkinson's disease.
- - How Michael J. Fox avoided 'easy cop-out' with 'Shrinking' role
Erin Jensen, USA TODAYJanuary 27, 2026 at 11:33 PM
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A new but familiar face will appear in the third season of "Shrinking," Apple TV's slice of life dramedy about a trio of therapists and their loved ones moving through the world.
Jimmy (Jason Segel), who is raising his teenage daughter while grieving the loss of his wife, works alongside Gaby (Jessica Williams), who's growing restless at the practice owned by Paul (Harrison Ford). Michael J. Fox appears on three episodes as Gerry, who like Paul, has Parkinson's disease. The two meet at a doctor's office during the Jan. 28 premiere.
"I take great pride in pulling Mike out of retirement every few years," says Bill Lawrence, who created the series with Segel and Brett Goldstein. Fox and Lawrence first worked together on the political sitcom "Spin City" (1996 to 2002). The actor left his starring role in 2000 to prioritize time with his family and finding a cure for the progressive neurodegenerative condition, which he was diagnosed with in 1991. Fox primarily did voice work until Lawrence recruited him for a two-episode stint on his hospital comedy "Scrubs" in 2004.
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Michael J. Fox and Bill Lawrence as photographed at A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Cure Parkinson's on Nov. 15, 2025, in New York City.
"He was one of my first real mentors," Lawrence, 57, acknowledges of Fox, 64. "He's one of those actors that turned out to be exactly the way you would hope he would be, just from being a fan. Such a great influence for me. And then when I really needed him on 'Scrubs,' I was able to call him and he came and did it, and that was super-cool for me."
After "Scrubs," Fox had multi-episode arcs on series like "Boston Legal" and became a recurring character on "The Good Wife," also appearing on the spinoff "The Good Fight." But on the Christine Baranski-led series, the veteran Fox had trouble memorizing his lines.
"A key element of this process is remembering lines, and I can't do it," Fox shared as a guest on comedian Mike Birbiglia's podcast "Working It Out" in 2022. "I don't take on something with a lot of lines because I can't do it."
But Fox was so intrigued by "Shrinking" he had to be a part of it.
"I thought Mike had kind of called it quits on acting for real, and we crossed paths," Lawrence says. "I was so overjoyed that he was a fan of the show."
Fox applauded the series' commitment to authentically portraying Parkinson's. Lawrence's grandfather and Goldstein's father were diagnosed with Parkinson's.
"Mike made the mistake of going, 'Yo, but you're a f------ jerk for not asking me to do it,'" Lawrence says. "Kind of a funny way to approach it. I'm like, 'Oh, my goodness, you'd be interested in it?' And he's like, 'Dude, I would love to do it.' And so anytime he makes that mistake with me, he's going to be back on television."
"It could have been an easy cop-out because they're therapists, it takes place in California," Lawrence adds. "He could just be playing Michael J. Fox as a cameo. But he's like, 'And I want to play a character. I just want to be one of the ensemble.' "
Gerry, not one to wallow in his diagnosis, can be seen in the trailer joking about being at the doctor for a haircut. Lawrence couldn't help but be inspired by Fox's real-life outlook.
"You don't really live in the world of self-pity when you're around him," Lawrence says. "We're all a couple steps removed, at most, from someone with MS or Parkinson's or cancer or whatever. And it doesn't have to be something that casts a dark shadow over everyone's life. There's no better person to represent that on our show than Mike."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Shrinking' Season 3 – What Michael J. Fox wanted out of his role
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Source: Entertainment
Published: January 27, 2026 at 10:45AM on Source: OPERA MAG
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