One week after wondering if Derek (Ted McGinley) would die on “Dereks Don’t Die,” (spoiler: he did not die), Apple TV‘s Shrinking went and did it, killing off a character in the most heart-breaking way possible. Don’t worry, Derek — and Derrick #2 (Damon Wayans Jr.) are still among the land of the living. But in the midst of Season 3, Episode 7, “I Will Be Grape,” a packed episode that — spoilers past this point — featured the return of Brett Goldstein’s Louis and Colbie Smulder’s Sofi, and the debut of legend Candice Bergen as Derk’s mom, the real jaw-dropper was the final line of the episode: “What do you mean, we lost Maya?”
To take a step back since she doesn’t appear this episode, Maya is played by Sherry Cola. She’s Gaby’s (Jessica Williams) depressed patient, who Gaby has been “Jimmying,” aka taking a more aggressive, personal approach with. That’s included joining Maya for Lord of the Rings themed trivia nights, and taking Maya to the local boxing gym to introduce her to new people and help find an outlet for her stress/loneliness. The last time we saw Maya was when she called Gaby to invite her to hang out, but Gaby was in the middle of heading to the hospital to see if Derek was okay. Gaby, professionally, said they could talk at their next appointment; but it was clear Maya thought they were friends, not just therapist and patient. The final shot of Maya in “Dereks Don’t Die” was Maya alone in her apartment, sipping wine.
This week, towards the beginning of the episode, Gaby calls Maya, who left the former a message about skipping therapy this week. Gaby playfully explains that if she does it again, she’ll find her wherever she is — bed, rollercoaster, etc. — and therapize the heck out of her. The only other mention of Maya in the episode is when Paul (Harrison Ford) offers his practice to Gaby. She thanks him, but explains that’s not what she wants with her life… She’s loved working with patients like those in the VA, and Maya, and wants to pursue that; not the sort of therapy practice Paul has constructed. Instead, her goal is to build her own trauma center.
It isn’t until later that we get the punch to the gut, when everyone is over at Jimmy’s house to celebrate his wife Tia’s (Lilan Bowden) birthday, two years after she was killed in a care crash. Part of that is singing “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri, but changing the lyric “I will be brave” to “I will be grape,” which Tia used to do. And while they’re all joyfully singing and remembering Tia, Gaby gets the phone call.
Specifically, the call comes from Donna (Jill Knox), who along with Donna’s husband Mark (Keith Powell) had recommended their co-worker/work friend Maya to Gaby, realizing she was suffering. Gaby, in fact, has missed several calls from Donna, and though we only hear Gaby’s side of the conversation, it’s clear what’s happened. Though in case it isn’t clear to you, the viewer, what happened, I’ll say it plainly: Maya died by suicide.
It’s a punch in the gut for the viewer, and likely even worse for Gaby. While it’s possible in the world of the show there may have been more interactions, from our perspective the last time they talked Gaby seemed to be quickly dismissive of Maya. To be clear, Gaby was acting professionally, and she was worried about Derek; we know that. But there’s a line to be drawn between Maya feeling abandoned by Gaby, and what came next.
It’s also something that clearly throws a wrench in Gaby’s plans for her future… Will the loss of Maya cause her to double down on her trauma center? Or will her seeming failure with Maya cause her to abandon the plan entirely? Either way, Maya won’t be there to see it.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Shrinking Season 3 Premiere Dates And Episode Guide:
New episodes of Shrinking Season 3 technically premiere Wednesdays on Apple TV, though given time zones in the United States new episodes will hit the service at 9pm ET / 6pm PT on Tuesdays. We’ve listed the Wednesday dates below, just for posterity.
Here’s what we expect from the full list of episodes in Shrinking Season 3, with premiere dates.
- Wednesday, January 28, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 1, “My Bad”
- Wednesday, February 4, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 2, “Happiness Mission”
- Wednesday, February 11, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 3, “D-Day”
- Wednesday, February 18, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 4, “The Field”
- Wednesday, February 25, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 5, “Hold Your Horsies”
- Wednesday, March 4, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 6, “Dereks Don’t Die”
- Wednesday, March 11, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 7, “I Will Be Grape”
- Wednesday, March 18, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 8, “Depression Diet”
- Wednesday, March 25, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 9, “TBA”
- Wednesday, April 1, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 10, “TBA”
- Wednesday, April 8, 2026: Shrinking, Season 3, Episode 11, “TBA” *Season Finale*
Where To Watch Shrinking Season 3
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