Apple TV+ may have a “Dope Thief,” but its dope queen has been thriving for two seasons now. In “Shrinking,” Jessica Williams, who rose to fame with the podcast and eventual HBO comedy variety special “2 Dope Queens,” plays fan favorite Gaby Evans, a colleague of psychotherapists Paul (Harrison Ford) and Jimmy (Jason Segel). In Season 2, Gaby navigates romance with Derrick (a new guy played by Damon Wayans Jr.), family dysfunction and a whole lot of two-steps forward, one-step back Gaby-ness that viewers have come to love. TheWrap spoke with Williams about her process and deep care of comedic timing, and why Harrison Ford is the GOAT.
NAILING THE RHYTHM
“It’s a combination of the writing and cast chemistry. The way that [showrunner] Bill Lawrence has wanted the show to go is that anytime you mix and match one character with another, it is its own little comedy relationship duo. If each character is fully developed with the writing, then it really comes through and feels specific. Everybody on the show has a different acting style. I really care about comedic timing. So for me, I try to make sure that I’m paying attention to [my castmates] so that we can stick to what the writers wrote while still honoring, like, Jason’s uniqueness.”
WORKING WITH DAMON WAYANS JR.
“Bill Lawrence wanted someone who could really pop with me, could really go toe-to-toe, and I’ve been such a huge fan of [Wayans in] “Happy Endings,” a huge fan of “New Girl.” He had always been someone that I wanted to work with. Because he was born into such a comedy dynasty, he just knows what he’s doing. It’s a real pleasure and challenge to keep up with him. Whenever I shoot with him, we’re just laughing and saying the craziest s–t, because we’re trying to surprise each other and outdo each other.”
HARRISON ’S SEASON 2 FINALE SPEECH
“It was some of the best acting I’ve ever witnessed in my life. There are so many moments on this show where I’m like, ‘Hell yeah, that’s Harrison f–ing Ford! That’s the f–ing GOAT. He’s the guy.’ And that was one of those moments. When the acting is great, when the crew is wonderful and the actors are prepared, all I have to do is listen. And so when I was listening, I was letting it move me. All I was doing was responding to how f–ing amazing he was.”
This story first ran in the Comedy issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine. Read more from the issue here.
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