Ted McGinley was amazed that fans wanted more of Derek on the show ‘Shrinking’, saying it was unlike anything he has experienced in his career.

If I had to describe the beginning of the popular grief comedy Shrinking on Apple TV+, I would mention that it kicks off with a Billy Joel tune. However, delving deeper, the true starting point revolves around a character named Derek.

Instead of immediately showcasing Jimmy (played by Jason Segel) belting out music by the pool and pretending to play an invisible piano during the early hours, Shrinking takes us to his tired neighbors Liz (portrayed by Christa Miller) and Derek (played by Ted McGinley). Liz calls out her husband’s name in a hushed yet frantic tone, leading the camera to focus on Derek, who pretends to be fast asleep, wishing Liz would seek help from their neighboring house to address the noise issue once more, which she does. This introduction cleverly sets the stage for Jimmy’s crisis before the audience even meets him. Looking back, the repeated call of “Derek” could symbolize the development of McGinley’s character from being secondary to becoming endearing.

In the first season of the well-received show created by Bill Lawrence, Brett Goldstein, and Jason Segel, McGinley’s part was initially so minor that he kept it low-key out of concern that people might be disappointed by his limited appearance. Despite the initial lack of focus on Derek, McGinley’s humor, memorable lines, and lively performance not only won over viewers but also left them craving more. Consequently, he was promoted to a main cast member in the second season, and ever since then, the admiration for both him and Derek has continued to flourish.

“When they said they were going to make me a regular I couldn’t believe it. It was literally the coolest thing that’s ever happened,” McGinley told Decider over Zoom. “I was a day player last season. There was no guarantee. I’d just come and go. But I think they began to see something. Because the writing is so smart and so good, they created this character and found this place in the chaos where people could land. And that’s Derek.”

Throughout McGinley’s four decades on screen, he’s starred in everything from Revenge of the Nerds and Happy Days to The Love Boat, Married… with Children, Hope & Faith, and more. The 66-year-old actor has nearly 100 credits to his name, but looking back on them today, he considers Shrinking the highlight.

“I learned the economy of words, in that Derek had so little to do, but it didn’t mean he didn’t get to score,” McGinley mused. “I’ve been on shows where the character resonates a little bit. Jefferson on Married…with Children hit with a lot of people, but Shrinking has been very exciting for me. Really, I have never had anything like this in my career. It’s been so much fun.”

Much to the delight of Derek’s devoted fans, McGinley’s character is retired in Shrinking Season 2, which means he has ample time to hang around the house, his wife, and their friend group. Whether he’s shouting off of a balcony, naming a new foster dog, or setting out on an intrepid search for the scissors, Derek still masters the art of taking potentially trivial lines to the next level, but this time around, he gets more substantial storylines that let McGinley shine even brighter.

Season 2 not only gives McGinley meatier dialogue and expands his scene partners (fulfilling his dream of sharing a one-on-one scene with Harrison Ford), but it challenges Derek and Liz’s marriage in a way that allowed the actor to set aside his character’s signature sense of humor and explore his emotional depths.

“It’s so interesting, because I didn’t really have that much to go on when we started the show. I had to come up with my own inner life for Derek — who I think he is and what he does. I created my own thing, just so I had something to hang on to, but I knew there was a reason they didn’t tell me. So I just went with it. I didn’t try to pry open any doors,” McGinley said. As Season 1 progressed and he started learning more about Derek, McGinley felt on track backstory-wise, but nothing prepared him for the Season 2 twist, when a lost Liz kisses her ex, Mac (Josh Hopkins), then comes clean about her infidelity to Derek.

For fans who overcame the thrill of a Cougar Town reunion and screamed “NOOO!!!” at their television screens when Liz and Mac locked lips, McGinley wants to assure you, you weren’t alone in your disappointment. “I opened the script one day and there’s a story that Liz is making out with some guy. I couldn’t believe it. I was very hurt personally. I was like, ‘Oh my god!’” the Shrinking star recalled. “When I went to work the next day after they shot that, the crew — every single one, man and woman — pulled me aside and said ‘I could barely hold the boom!’ and ‘I wanted to get it out of focus!’ because they were all angry. And that made me feel so good. Everybody loves Christa, of course. The only reason this story works is because she’s brilliant, and she’s incredibly generous. And it’s courageous, in my opinion, for them to write this for her to play, because it’s like kicking the puppy a little bit.”

After Liz tells Derek about the kiss in an emotionally gutting Episode 7 scene (a series stand-out for both Miller and McGinley), a teary-eyed Derek retreats to Gaby’s (Jessica Williams) house to clear his head. In the phenomenal Episode 8, “Last Drink,” written by Sasha Garron and directed by James Ponsoldt, McGinley’s character confronts Mac, only to find he’s “very hospitable for an asshole.” Rather than take his emotions out on Liz’s ex, Derek looks inward and suspects he’s not completely innocent, so he heads to Gaby’s office for an impromptu therapy session, giving viewers another heartwarming scene between one of Shrinking‘s most underrated duos.

“I think [Jessica] is brilliant. Any time you get to work opposite her, it’s just magic. She’s so unique and such a massive talent. I’m her biggest fan,” McGinley said. “To have a scene like that where it really is centered and she hits it right on the nail — I still have not seen it, but I just remember playing it, how it felt. And we were both taken aback by where it went.”

With help from Gaby, Derek realizes that although Liz screwed up, he could have been more present for her in her crucial moment of vulnerability. In a move that absolutely crushes Liz (and anyone with a beating heart), Derek apologizes, and the mutual forgiveness simultaneously softens the couple, strengthens their 26-year marriage, and speaks volumes about their characters in the actor’s eyes.

While four episodes remain, Shrinking Season 2 was already so monumental for Derek and McGinley that fans online are clamoring for the actor to win his first Emmy.

“That’s like not even in my vernacular. I’ve been doing this for 44 years. I’ve never been to [The Emmys]. Maybe I went once when Marion Ross or somebody was nominated and I was in the cheap seats and we were asked to go support. But I’ve never really been to any of those things,” McGinley shared. “My wife and I are always at home watching. We don’t even feel like we’re part of that conversation ever. So to hear something like that…my god. I can’t even begin to think about what that would even be like. I can’t even hear what you’re saying.”

When chatting with Decider ahead of the Season 2 premiere, Lawrence acknowledged that Shrinking “definitely turned some heads” by making “the original Jump the Shark guy” a series regular, but after almost casting McGinley in various projects over the years (he even auditioned for Scrubs but lost out to John C. McGinley!), Lawrence felt confident in his decision.

On top of the fact that Lawrence’s wife Miller plays McGinley’s Shrinking wife, there’s another reason why Derek holds a special place in the showrunner’s heart. “There is a lot of Bill in Derek — the best parts of Bill. I still haven’t seen the bad part. It’s so unusual to have a guy who’s been doing this as long as he has at his level, and he comes into the set and, like the rest of us, cannot wait to get in and start mixing it up. You can’t hold him back. He’s like a wild Mustang that wants in. He couldn’t stop if he tried,” McGinley explained. “With Derek, it’s that glimmer — that positive nature of Bill’s — and the fact that he and Christa have this shorthand and a way of communicating that’s so honest. It’s beautiful to watch and really hard to achieve. And there’s so much of them in Liz and Derek’s relationship.”

While reflecting on his own evolution as an actor and a human during his two seasons on Shrinking, McGinley teared up before sharing a few major takeaways.

“With the overall concept of the show, what I’ve really had to face is how human we all are, and that no matter what you do, no matter what you have, no matter where you go, you will always be fallible, and run into difficulties, and run into love, and fortune, and pain, and agony. That’s part of being alive. And it makes it so much better when you have someone you can talk to. And sometimes just that is enough to save your life,” McGinley said. “Shrinking, as funny as it is, is really important, I think, because people are seeing that… There are real moments where it’s just about finding someone and having someone, or being the other person. Reach out. Make time. I think that’s the bigger picture.”

The actor’s experience on the Apple TV+ series has been so rewarding that he has no requests for Derek in Shrinking Season 3. He’s continuing to trust the process and is grateful for whatever comes his way — even if it’s another literal cliffhanger.

“That’s the fun, opening the script and saying, ‘OK, what’s going to happen?’ I find that really enjoyable. I love to be challenged. So for me, I don’t want to know. I’m not asking. I’m staying out of it, and I’m going to open it up one day and go ‘NO!’ and they’re going to boop me off the cliff,” McGinley laughed.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from Season 2, it’s that “everyone wants a Derek,” so Shrinking writers, if you’re reading this, don’t you dare boop Ted McGinley.

New episodes of Shrinking Season 2 premiere Wednesdays on Apple TV+.