Jason Segel Reveals the ‘Vulnerable’ Reason ‘Shrinking’ Feels ‘So True’ (Exclusive)

Jason Segel spoke with PEOPLE about the therapeutic value of ‘Shrinking.’ Segel stars as therapist Jimmy Laird on the Apple TV+ series, which he says has led to “incredibly meaningful” conversations with fans.

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Jason Segel says playing a grieving therapist on Shrinking has led to “incredibly meaningful” moments with fans

“This show in particular, we’re tackling some heavy stuff,” he tells PEOPLE

Shrinking’s first three seasons are now streaming on Apple TV+

Jason Segel wears his heart on his sleeve as he navigates playing a grieving therapist on Shrinking.

The actor, 46, spoke with PEOPLE on Saturday, Aug. 15 about the overall fan response to the show, which was picked up for a fourth season after originally being pitched as a three-season arc.

“Harrison [Ford] talks about it all the time, and his is in the Parkinson’s realm of people coming up to him,” Segel said on the second day of the Television Academy’s Televerse Festival. “Mine is in the loss of a loved one. People coming up, and it’s incredibly meaningful because it is like a bullseye to what I think the point of making art is. Which is that for a limited amount of time, you are a surrogate for the audience and saying, ‘I’m going to explore this subject, and hopefully that’ll be helpful to you, to anyone going through it or anyone near someone going through it.’”

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He adds, “So this show in particular, we’re tackling some heavy stuff. When someone comes up and says, ‘Hey, it really helped me get through. I lost my partner last year. I lost my mom or my dad last year. The show helped,’ it’s the most meaningful thing. It’s the reason I do it.”

While stories from viewers have influenced how he approaches his role, Segel says he also draws on his own life for inspiration.

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“Potentially why the show works to the degree it does, is a lot of us taking our own s--t in there,” Segel says. “Our own therapy sessions and what’s going on in our own lives, which is a very vulnerable way to write and to make a show. And I think that that might be why it feels so true.”

Mike Yarish/Apple TV

The series premiered in January 2023 and wrapped its third season in April 2026. Ahead of the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards, the dramedy was nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series, while Segel, Ford, Michael Urie, Jessica Williams, Michael J. Fox and Brett Goldstein are all being considered in their respective categories.

Creator Bill Lawrence has teased that fans can expect a potential time jump in the show’s fourth season, which currently doesn’t have a release date.

“I think people will feel when they come back to this show that it’s a completely different story,” Lawrence told Variety in April. “We feel that the characters of this show have enough stuff going on in their life that we were interested in seeing what a new story for these characters looks like.”

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“We’re already deep into the writers room, in the fourth season, so I’m lucky enough to know what happens. And I think people will dig it,” he said, adding, “People shouldn’t be surprised if there’s a time jump and it feels like we’re telling a completely different story.”

Shrinking’s first three seasons are streaming on Apple TV+.

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