Jessica Williams and the Shrinking cast took a victory lap at the Television Academy’s Televerse festival on August 15, 2025, rolling into Emmy week with easy confidence and a few new stories to tell.
On stage and the carpet, Jessica Williams spoke clearly about how she handled sharing scenes with Harrison Ford: by pulling a “movie blackout” before season 1, she avoided rewatching his classics so she wouldn’t be star-struck, and it kept the work present.
As per E! Online report dated August 19, 2025, Jessica Williams stated,
“I’m not scared of you.”
Ford agreed she’s not, as per an Associated Press on-carpet clip. When asked if he ever seeks advice from his co-stars, Harrison Ford joked,
“No, I go home for that s--t! That’s where I get my instruction,”
with Jessica Williams adding,
“Never in a million years would he do that!”
Pivoting ahead, season 3 has wrapped production, with Michael J. Fox joining the ensemble and Cobie Smulders returning, developments that directly touch Paul, Gaby, and Jimmy’s evolving dynamic.
“I’m not scared of you”: Jessica Williams' "movie blackout" hack for working with Harrison Ford
Jessica Williams’ tactic was simple: protect the work by muting the legend. As per the E! Online report dated August 19, 2025, Jessica Williams remarked,
“I didn't watch any of your movies before we started working together. I mean, I'd seen them, but I just wanted it to be normal. I didn't want to get all freaked out, so I wasn't scared of you.”
She added at the end of her sentence, facing Ford,
"I'm not scared of you."
The exchange came from an AP clip tied to their Televerse appearance and underscores how she kept her scenes with Ford grounded. Ford also agreed with her, stating,
"No, she's not scared of me."
Inside the Televerse panel: Banter, process, and why Ford “goes home for advice”
Televerse’s day-two Shrinking session ran on easy rapport. Harrison Ford jokingly answered on being asked if he asks for advice from his co-stars,
“No, I go home for that s--t! That’s where I get my instruction.”
For context, Harrison is married to Calista Flockhart since 2010. Flockhart is an American actor best known for leading Ally McBeal (Golden Globe winner, multiple Emmy nominations), and Jessica Williams volleyed back,
“Never in a million years would he do that!”
The looseness mirrors Shrinking’s set culture, run lines, then play it honest, which the Television Academy’s recap also captured in a panel roundup highlighting the cast’s chemistry and Ford’s influence.
What changes for Gaby & Paul in Shrinking season 3
Season 3 was built after Shrinking season 2 put Paul’s Parkinson’s front and centre and deepened his connection with Jessica Williams’ Gaby. Season 2 write-ups repeatedly singled out Ford’s warmth and the ensemble’s chemistry, a useful frame for what comes next as Paul, Gaby, and Jimmy continue to negotiate boundaries at work and at home.
Jessica Williams’ Gaby remains the bridge between candor and care, the person who can deflate tension without trivializing it.
Brett Goldstein’s Louis is back, and what it means for Gaby
Brett Goldstein’s Louis Winston, introduced in season 2 as a complicated pivot in the story’s grief engine, has been discussed for a season 3 return. As per the CBR report dated June 20, 2025, co-creator Bill Lawrence indicated Brett Goldstein and Cobie Smulders would be back for multiple episodes.
Some coverage through late 2024 also argued for extending Louis’ arc. For Jessica Williams’ Gaby, Louis’ re-entry raises practical stakes about forgiveness culture inside the office, especially as Jimmy and Paul weigh closure against consequences.
Michael J. Fox (and Cobie Smulders) reset the board
People confirmed Michael J. Fox’s casting in May, noting the on-set reunion with Bill Lawrence. Later coverage captured Ford’s reaction. As per a People.com report dated May 15, 2025, Fox joins Shrinking season 3. Harrison Ford stated Fox’s presence on set was “essential.”
Meanwhile, People also reported Cobie Smulders’ recurring return opposite Jason Segel, tightening the Jimmy timeline in season 3. Together, these moves tilt story gravity in ways that will run straight through Paul and Gaby’s choices, including how Jessica Williams’ Gaby mediates change without losing the clinic’s center of gravity.
Stay tuned for more updates.
Harrison Ford and Jessica Williams attend the AFI Awards at Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills on February 06, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images for AFI)