Karen Gillan has joined the cast of Apple TV’s acclaimed comedy drama Shrinking, as the series pivots to a “completely different” story in its fourth season.
The series started out with therapist Dr Jimmy Laird (Jason Segel) struggling through extreme grief over his recently deceased wife, with the first three seasons taking him on a journey towards acceptance.
Since the third season launched, co-creator Bill Lawrence has stated that he considers the first full story arc to be complete – and the series is now seeking to shake things up for season 4.
While the main Shrinking cast will reprise their roles, Lawrence has teased a “time jump” in the next run, which will significantly evolve the situations each character is living through.
The introduction of a new recurring character, played by Gillan, is part of this bold push forward, but details on who exactly she’s playing are being kept under wraps for now.
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Of course, the actor became a household name in the UK for her turn as Amy Pond in Doctor Who, but went on to become a global superstar with roles in the Guardians of the Galaxy and Jumanji franchises.
Most recently, she reunited with her Doctor Who collaborator Steven Moffat for ITV’s Douglas Is Cancelled, and served as co-producer on indie film Over Your Dead Body – which stars Shrinking’s own Jason Segel in the lead role.
Variety was first to break the news of Gillan’s casting in Shrinking season 4, with Lawrence previously telling the publication his rationale for reinventing the Apple TV series partway through its run.
“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,” he explained.
“People shouldn’t be surprised if there’s a time jump and it feels like we’re telling a completely different story.”
Besides Segel, the Shrinking cast also includes the likes of Harrison Ford (Captain America: Brave New World), Ted McGinley (Married… with Children), Jessica Williams (Fantastic Beasts), Luke Tennie (The Pitt) and Michael Urie (Maestro).
Shrinking is available to stream on Apple TV. Start your seven-day free Apple TV trial at Apple.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
