The final episode of drama miniseries The Shrink Next Door arrived on Apple TV+ today, with the real-life story of Marty Markowitz (Will Ferrell) and his boundary-violating psychiatrist Isaac Herschkopf (Paul Rudd) reaching a satisfying conclusion.
In the season finale, titled The Verdict, we watched as Markowitz got back in touch with his estranged sister Phyllis (Kathryn Hahn), who he’d cut out of his life on Herschkopf’s request almost 30 years prior, and decided to report Herschkopf to the New York Department of Health.
With that extraordinary yet incredibly heart-breaking story having now come to an end, you’re probably wondering whether we’re likely to see The Shrink Next Door cast return for a second round of dark, dark comedy – and we’re here to help.
Here’s everything we know so far about The Shrink Next Door season two, from whether it’ll return and who will be reprising their roles. Also – make sure to check out our Big RT Interview with The Shrink Next Door and WandaVision star Kathryn Hahn.
Will The Shrink Next Door return for season 2?
Apple TV+ has not yet announced whether The Shrink Next Door will be back for a second season, but we’d be very surprised if the drama were to come back considering it has always been branded as a miniseries.
Based on Joe Nocera’s Bloomberg podcast of the same name, The Shrink Next Door tells the real story of Isaac Herschkopf, a New York psychiatrist who embedded himself into the life of his patient Martin Markowitz over the course of 30 years.
Since the series covers the same period of the podcast, up to Markowitz making a complaint against Herschkopf to the New York Department of Health in 2012, there wouldn’t really be anywhere for a second season to go, especially since Markowitz and Herschkopf no longer speak, Herschkopf’s medical licence has been taken away from him and Markowitz has closed down his family business.
It’s possible that The Shrink Next Door season two could explore the other stories of Herschkopf’s patients that featured only briefly in the first season – for instance, that of Miriam, who was played by Sarayu Blue and appears to be a fictional character based on Herschkopf’s other real-life patients.
In the podcast, Nocera hears from Herschkopf’s other patients Judith and Emily (who are both given pseudonyms) and their relationships with the psychiatrist. A second season could look at these in more detail.
However, it’s most likely that if The Shrink Next Door were to be given a second season, it would focus on a completely new story entirely, much like the drama Dirty John, which is also based on a podcast.
The Shrink Next Door season 2 predicted release date?
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If The Shrink Next Door was renewed for a second season, it’s likely that we’d have to wait a while for episodes to arrive on Apple TV+ as not a huge amount has happened in real-life since the events of the miniseries.
However, when the show does get its hands on some material, we would predict that production would take roughly half a year, based on the first season. Season one began filming back in November 2020 in Los Angeles and finished in March 2021, with the show finally premiering in November.
If Apple TV+ was to greenlight the season in the near-future, we wouldn’t expect it to arrive until at least mid-2023.
The Shrink Next Door season 2 cast
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As we don’t know whether The Shrink Next Door could even return for a second season, it’s hard to predict which cast members are likely to return.
It’s possible that Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd will reprise their roles as Martin ‘Marty’ Markowitz and Dr Isaac ‘Ike’ Herschkopf – but this very much depends on the direction that season two decides to take.
If the show decides to tell a completely different story, we may see Ferrell, Rudd and the other Shrink Next Door cast members Kathryn Hahn (Phyllis), Casey Wilson (Bonnie), Cornell Womack (Bruce), Sarayu Blue (Miriam) and Robin Bartlett (Cathy) take on new roles for season two.
Speaking to RadioTimes.com exclusively for the Big RT Interview, Hahn said that she’d love to take on more projects with Ferrell and Rudd, saying that one particular scene with Rudd “made [her] want to act with him so much more”.