Article
Career Renaissance
Bill Lawrence has been around long enough to hear the comedy, the multicam sitcom — everything, really — declared dead. And for just as long, he’s kept his head down, making shows like “Spin City,” “Scrubs” and “Cougar Town.”
Current Projects
Just summarizing his full plate leaves little doubt. There’s “Shrinking,” starring Jason Segel as a grieving widower and therapist who takes an unconventional approach with his client and those in his orbit, including his grumpy mentor, Paul, played by Harrison Ford. The Apple TV+ series, which Lawrence co-created with Segel and Brett Goldstein, concludes its second season Wednesday and has been renewed for a third. There’s also “Bad Monkey,” an adaptation of Carl Hiaasen’s novel starring Vince Vaughn that launched on Apple TV+ earlier this year and was recently renewed for a second season, and a forthcoming campus-set HBO comedy starring Steve Carell, which revolves around an author’s complicated relationship with his daughter.
Reviving the Past
Then there are the shows many thought were over for good. After years of being asked about a reboot of “Scrubs,” his NBC medical comedy starring Zach Braff and Donald Faison that ran from 2001 to 2010, one is finally in development, with Lawrence attached as an executive producer. And a year after “Ted Lasso,” the feel-good comedy about a British soccer team and their wholesome coach, aired what appeared to be its series finale, it was announced that the series — co-created by Lawrence, Jason Sudeikis, Brendan Hunt and Joe Kelly — will actually return for a fourth season.
Interview
Taking a break from the writers room of the Carell-led series, Lawrence sat down with The Times to discuss “Shrinking’s” season finale, what finally got him to revive “Scrubs,” and whether television can get back to its days of making stars.
Season Finale
Season 1 ended with a cliffhanger, literally. This season’s finale feels like an emotional cliffhanger, with the start of some closure for Jimmy with Louis, the person responsible for his wife’s death.
Louis’ Character
We wanted to use the ending of the first season to set people up to think that something very bad was going to happen at the end of the second season. That’s why we had bad things happen to Brett Goldstein’s character, Louis — had him at the train station with Alice talking about how he’d had bad thoughts being there before.
Paul’s Speech
Let’s talk about Paul. Another emotional moment from the finale is the speech he gives at Thanksgiving. It’s so powerful and tender. We know his Parkinson’s disease will continue to progress. And I know that character’s story is a personal one for you.
Michael J. Fox
Has Michael seen the show? Has he given any feedback?
Cobie Smulders
Might Cobie Smulders, Jason’s former “How I Met Your Mother” co-star who guest starred this season, make a return next season? Is there interest in exploring that dynamic for Jimmy for the season focused on moving forward?
Scrubs Reboot
What is Jimmy to you? What are you working through in Jimmy?
Ted Lasso
Another show that’s returning is “Ted Lasso,” which you’re an executive producer on. Throughout its third season the question loomed about whether it was a series finale or a season finale. Jason Sudeikis had conceived it as a three-season show, but things changed. What happened?
Conclusion
As I was looking back at our previous coverage of you, there was a quote from 2013 that stood out to me that I want to read to you. I’m curious how you would amend this quote: “There are two ways to survive in television now, and one is really hard, and I haven’t cracked it yet, which is to grab hold of this giant zeitgeist hit like ‘Modern Family,’ where everyone in the world wants to see it, and you just write your own ticket. The other way is to appeal to a very specific, very loyal group of people, and if you make that contract, you can keep a show like ‘Scrubs’ alive for nine years.”
FAQs
Q: What inspired the decision to incorporate Louis’ character into the show?
A: It was loosely connected to a true story of a family that had embraced a young person who was their Louis, [a person who had] gotten drunk and made a mistake.
Q: Will we see Michael J. Fox on the show?
A: He is way too young and is still such a rock star with that disease.
Q: Is there a plan to revive more of your past shows?
A: Yes, there are talks about reviving other shows.
Q: Will Cobie Smulders return for the third season?
A: Good idea.
Q: What is Jimmy to you? What are you working through in Jimmy?
A: I’m trying to say this without divulging too much about the third season. But Jimmy has built a found family around himself. I have a real family around me. My last kid is 18 and about to spl…
