Michael Urie Grappled With Imposter Syndrome When Cast In ‘Shrinking’

The new Apple TV+ series Shrinking is centered around Jason Segel’s Jimmy, a therapist in dire need of therapy.

In this traumedy-slash-tragicomedy-slash-dramedy about grief and mental health, Jimmy’s life falls apart after the sudden death of his wife. Despite his unraveling, he tries to help his patients in rather unconventional ways. He ignores his training and ethics and tells his clients exactly what he thinks of them and their various predicaments. These candid sessions lead to enormous changes for everyone.

Michael Urie portrays Brian, the best friend Jimmy ghosted when his life fell apart. Urie has impeccable comedic timing and several hits to his name. In a recent interview, he talked about getting the role and working with “The Ted Lasso guys.”

“I had real imposter syndrome,” he said, explaining his initial feelings of not knowing anyone involved with the project before taking on the role. With an acting resume that includes big hits such as Ugly Betty, Younger, and the Netflix holiday movie Single All the Way, Urie is no stranger to success. Still, he explained that with Shrinking, not knowing any of the “big heavies” behind the show was at first intimidating.

The 10-episode series is written by Emmy Award-winning Ted Lasso co-creator Bill Lawrence, Emmy Award-winning Ted Lasso star, writer and co-executive producer Brett Goldstein and Segel.

As a Ted Lasso fan, Urie was excited about the project and working with Lawrence and Goldstein. Then, he learned Segel was also a creator. “And this was before I knew Harrison Ford was in it!”

When the opportunity to audition came his way, Urie read the first two scripts. Since his character isn’t in the pilot episode, he decided to do all the scenes from the second episode in his audition tape. He immediately sent it in and patiently waited.

Some time passed, and he kept an eye on the project. “This happens sometimes, you know, you catch wind of a project, but it doesn’t necessarily happen right away. I’ve gotten good after all these years of knowing it’s out in the world and trying to forget about it. I just went about my life.”

His patience paid off a month later when his agents called to tell him he got the part. “Suddenly, I had this amazing job!” He hopped on a plane from New York to Los Angeles and met everyone for the first time. “We were immediately like family.”

The entire ensemble cast is fantastic (one of the best on television). It is a mix of Hollywood heavyweights like Segel and Ford and newer faces that will soon become household names. Jessica Williams, Lukita Maxwell, Luke Tennie, Christa Miller and Urie each shine with stellar performances as those in Jimmy’s inner circle.

Urie discussed how important representation is to him as an actor. “I’ve had some great experiences and amazing projects that have changed how people think about queerness. I’m thinking about Ugly Betty and Single All the Way, and then to enter this essentially straight space, be the queer voice, and have them look to me for ways to represent this character was very cool. Generous is the word I keep going back to with the creatives of this show.”

His initial imposter syndrome, he explained, came from not knowing the people he’d be working with on Shrinking. “I wondered, ‘Are they going to like me? What are they going to think of me? What’s it going to be like?’ And then, I found my three bosses, Bill, Jason, and Brett, to be so sweet and generous. Jason is a big Teddy Bear. You know, I didn’t know what to expect.”

Shrinking is hilarious and traumatic, and Urie was intrigued by the mix of genres. “The way that they can make something so funny and sad, it’s unique. The scripts are so good! I devoured the first episode. And then I see all this material for this character Brian, and he’s hilarious. He’s this happy-go-lucky-sunny guy whose motto is ‘Everything goes my way,’ and that’s the last thing Jimmy wants to hear or deal with. Instead of saying, ‘Hey, I need some space,’ he ghosts him, which is so unhealthy and cruel. Jimmy is this anti-hero therapist who does everything wrong and then embraces doing it the wrong way and succeeds. He also sometimes fails. With Brian, something is happening underneath that’s causing this persona, and I realized what a phenomenal role this is. I feel this show is doing something unique that we are seeing more of wherein the laugh and the cry are close to each other.”

Urie reflected on the first table read, which he said changed everything and squashed his initial nerves. He talked about sitting there quietly because his character is only seen and not heard in the pilot episode. “Bill did the most incredibly generous thing for me. He was narrating the table read. Jason is killing it, and Harrison is killing it. Then Bill gets to my part, and I don’t say anything; you see my character across the street. Bill made a point to introduce me. He wanted me to feel included. At that moment, all my worries went away. I was like, ‘Ok, I belong,’ and I knew this would be great. I will never forget it. I will never forget the moment Bill Lawrence threw me a bit.”