Jason Segel calls Michael J. Fox’s performance as a man with Parkinson’s disease on Shrinking Season 3 “the real definition of art.” Fox announced his Parkinson’s diagnosis in the 1990s and has been an advocate for Parkinson’s awareness since. He mostly shares scenes with Harrison Ford’s Paul this season, whose progressing Parkinson’s symptoms are a major part of the plot.
Eric Dane played a character with ALS on Brilliant Minds in fall 2025 following the announcement of his ALS diagnosis earlier that year. Now, Fox is showing viewers what it’s like to live with Parkinson’s through the Emmy-nominated Apple TV comedy, which premieres on January 28 with a one-hour episode.
“Being witness to any of it is like an incredible act of bravery, and to me, the real definition of art,” Segel says of this trend. “To perform an act of self-exploration so honest in front of the camera, it’s the ultimate example of what you’re trying to do out there on a daily basis [as an actor]. To see it in its most extreme and brave version is just awe-inspiring.”
Fox has “been a constant point of reference” for Paul’s storyline in Shrinking, Segel tells TV Insider. While Ford’s character is loosely inspired by co-creator Brett Goldstein’s father, who has Parkinson’s, Fox has also helped inform Paul’s story thanks to his friendship with co-creator Bill Lawrence. Fox starred in one of Lawrence’s first TV shows, Spin City.
“He and Bill are very close,” Segel says, “and I know he’s been really instrumental in shaping that and also answering some of the emotional questions about how he’s felt during the process.”
Apple TV
Segel had a moment with Fox on the set that allowed him to bring his career full circle.
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“The biggest thrill for me, in addition to just the bravery of the performance and how cool it is and all that, I got to tell him that in my 20s when I was trying to do a TV show and make a movie at the same time, and didn’t know if it was possible in terms of just making it through, we would all say to each other, ‘Michael J. Fox did it.'”
This is in reference to Fox filming Back to the Future and Family Ties at the same time in the 1980s. As explained in Fox’s Still documentary (on Apple TV) and in past interviews, Fox would spend the day on set of Family Ties and nights shooting Back to the Future. It was a tireless few months that would end up inspiring a generation of actors, including Segel and his friends.
“[For] me and my cohort, this was a guy that we pointed to as an example of it was possible,” Segel raves. “I don’t know, without him blazing a trail, that I would’ve even known that I could pull something like that off.”
Segel shares a scene with Fox in Shrinking Season 3. This season also stars Christa Miller, Jessica Williams, Lukita Maxwell, Ted McGinley, Luke Tennie, and Michael Urie. Guest stars include Goldstein, Damon Wayans Jr., Candice Bergen, Jeff Daniels, and more.
Shrinking, Season 3 Premiere, Wednesday, January 28, Apple TV
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