A “moment we knew was coming”

Note: This story contains spoilers from “Shrinking,” Season 2, Episode 4.

“Shrinking” star Luke Tennie says the explosively physical scene in Episode 4 between Jimmy (Jason Segel) and Sean (Tennie) was a second-stage and viewers ultimately knew it would happen sooner than later, adding that He said he conjured the momentum in this scene from a casting note he received when he first auditioned for the role.

“It’s a moment that we knew was coming because we hadn’t really seen it,” Tennie said in an interview with TheWrap. “We saw Sean snapping to protect someone in Episode 1, Season 1. We never saw Sean just lose his temper without really understanding what the trigger was. So it was exciting, but the biggest part of the preparation for me was dealing with the birth of Sean.”

For those who need a reminder, Sean – an Army veteran who now lives with his Jimmy (who is also Jimmy's therapy patient) – has been working since Season 1 to control his anger, post-traumatic stress disorder, and family drama. In Season 2, Episode 4, Sean is still trying to forgive Liz (Christ Miller) for selling her share of her food truck business to Sean's father Tim (Kenajuan Bentley). Working with his father initially goes well, but when his father brings up his decision to evict Sean from his family home, not acknowledging the role he played in Sean's anger issues and acknowledging Sean's new development, Sean leaves elegantly handles the moment, but ultimately suppresses his feelings.

Things come to a boil later in the episode when Jimmy confronts Sean about how badly he handled some rude street workers (whom he almost fought), prompting Sean to reveal what annoys him: his father.

When Jimmy tells Sean that he can't blame his father, that he doesn't know what's going on with him, and that his father failed him in this incident, Sean snaps at Jimmy.

“Hey, this is pretty damn complicated, right? He's a good man, okay?!” Sean says to a stunned Jimmy, absolving his father of any guilt.

“He loves me. He worked his ass off for me and I did a lot to him, so I don't want to hear you talk about my dad!” Sean says as he pushes Jimmy.

Jimmy de-escalates the situation by asking Sean to talk about it. Sean, visibly shaken by his own actions, apologizes. Tennie told TheWrap that the energy that filled that scene came in part from a message he previously received before signing on to the show, as well as the dialogue that was scripted.

“The unique thing about that moment for me was that it forced me to go all the way back to my audition, which for me was the birth of Sean. And I remember getting notes in casting saying, “We should feel the tension between Sean and Jimmy.” It should almost seem like Jimmy was in danger if he was in that room with him such an unstable character.' And what we see now is the through line of that first note, that adjustment, that I received.”

He continued: “It was always underneath every moment of joy that Sean had, there was always a bit of that hair trigger. And of course that has to be the case, because we know that to be true with this character.”

There was a lot going on in this week's episode titled “Made You Look.” With Alice dating her best friend's boyfriend and Brian's (Michael Urie) husband expressing his desire to adopt a child, there was a lot to juggle. But showrunner and executive producer Bill Lawrence knew the perfect person for the job: “Bad Monkey” and “Scrubs” star Zach Braff, who directed the eventful episode.

Lawrence says it's always been important to him to keep star talent like Braff – who also directed Episode 3 – in his universe.

“If I love someone and they're super talented, I'd be an idiot not to keep them in my world,” Lawrence told TheWrap. “And Zach Braff is in 'Bad Monkey,' one of the leads in 'Cougar Town,' Bob Clendenin in 'Bad Monkey.' There is an Easter egg that you may have noticed in this episode when a picture of Brett Goldstein's fiancé (played by Meredith Hagner) was shown in one of these scenes. She might look like the female lead in Bad Monkey coming through.”

He continued: “For me, working with my friends is a gift. And Zach is an extremely talented director; received an Emmy nomination for directing “Ted Lasso.” He is a great artist. I look forward to continuing to bring all the actors, actresses and writers from this series into the next one, no matter what I get to do. For me, it’s part of the fun.”

Braff spoke about directing the episode in an Instagram post on Wednesday, saying, “I'm going to be honest with you…tonight's episode of 'Shrinking' is awesome.” Episode 4 of Season 2 is the second episode that I directed this season. Wait until you see these performances.”

“Shrinking” releases new episodes on Apple TV+ on Wednesdays.

The post “Shrinking” Star Luke Tennie Reveals Explosive Scene Between Jimmy and Sean in Episode 4: “A Moment We Knew Was Coming” appeared first on TheWrap.