Harrison Ford Has Always Been Funny: The Evolution from Pretend Grouch to 'Jesus'

The ‘Shrinking’ star on his middle name, needing ‘Dragon Ball Z’ explained and his emotional tribute to the craft

I first met Harrison Ford in an elevator - it was 2009 and several movies were junketing at once at the Four Seasons Hotel. I was there to interview him for his medical drama “Extraordinary Measures” but Saoirse Ronan was also there to promote “The Lovely Bones.” Ronan was already in the elevator with her father Paul when the doors opened and freakin’ Han Solo was standing right there. There are many great actors in Los Angeles, but I’ve never seen better work than the people on that elevator who pretended like it was nothing special that Indiana Jones was getting on their elevator.

Then, Paul Ronan said hello to Ford, as they had worked together on “The Devil’s Own.” Ford recognized him immediately and lit up, asking what he was up to. Paul explained his daughter was an actress and introduced the two to one another. After the Romans got off at their floor, Ford said out loud (probably to whoever was with him but kind of the elevator in general): “That guy is one of the best actors I’ve ever worked with. So his daughter is an actor, too?” I jumped in to explain she was, in fact, a fantastic actor and even an Oscar nominee. Ford said, “Makes sense, he’s remarkable.”

At the time, Ford had a reputation as extremely private, which translated at the time to people thinking he was grouchy. But even then, it was obvious he was a goofball at heart. He regularly won Halloween, dressing up in outfits including a hot dog, a pea in a pod, or a punk rocker in a metal band. And there was the famous clip where David Blaine does a magic trick and Ford stares at him before demanding “Get the fuck out of my house.” I saw some other talk show clips where people thought he was being prickly, but it seemed very obvious to me he was doing a bit. And that day I was more sure of it - he was thoughtful and funny and I remember wishing more people could see that side of him.

Later when I spoke to him for the biopic “42” I mentioned how director Brian Helgeland warned Ford that in playing Brooklyn Dodgers owner Branch Rickey, he wasn’t going to look like himself. Ford responded, “That’s okay, we’re all sick of that guy’s face anyway.” A few years later, in a career and life highlight, I was able to sit down with him for a full 2 hours for a retrospective and he couldn’t have been more delightful, speaking to a packed room of actors about the craft he loves so much. When I started the convo by saying the room was full of his fellow actors, he pretended to panic and said: “I was under the impression I already had the part!”

So I was not surprised when “Shrinking” premiered on Apple TV that Ford was so damn funny. What did catch me off guard was how heartbreaking he could also be and how well he played on that “grouchy” image. He was perfectly cast as Paul, the senior therapist at a practice that included Jason Segel’s Jimmy and Jessica Williams’ Gaby. It wasn’t hard to see that the actors’ admiration for their co-star mirrored Jimmy and Gaby’s feelings for Paul. And when Paul began to show a softer and goofier side throughout the season - particularly enjoying Fun Dip candy - we were as delighted as the characters. I rarely make surefire predictions, but I remember declaring there was no way Harrison Ford could lose the Emmy Award.

Oh, there was one way - he wasn’t nominated. To this day I have no rhyme or reason for this. His costars were, the show was, and yet somehow he was completely overlooked. Yes, supporting actor in a comedy was a packed race but he was obviously the best. I did wonder how much campaigning had to do with it - Ford wasn’t known for pressing the flesh as much as others. Maybe voters didn’t think he wanted it? Maybe everyone assumed he was already in and used their nominating votes for dark horses? I genuinely have no idea. (Insert Charlie Day conspiracy meme.)

This was corrected in the show’s Second Season, where he was recognized with his first ever Emmy nomination at long last. I was sure he would win. Then, in a move no one saw coming, the wonderful Jeff Hiller took home the prize for his sublime work in “Somebody Somewhere.” No one looked more surprised than Hiller that the least well-known actor in the category, from a niche little comedy, was the winner. But it was also a beautiful and deserved win and everyone loves Hiller, so no one could be upset. (Some speculated Ford and costar Michael Urie “split the vote” for the show but I’ve never been a big believer in that.)

So I’m not even going to risk jinxing anything and make any assumptions about Ford’s chances for Season Three. It is again an insanely packed category and honestly could be filled out with just supporting actors from “Shrinking” alone - his costars Urie, Luke Tennie and Ted McGinley are also stellar.) All I will say is that at this point, the world knows Ford is a comedic genius, he’s been doing a lot more press than years past, and somehow “Shrinking” gets better and better each season.

Most importantly, he seems to be having a blast. He’s even willing to be the butt of his castmate’s teasing. You can tell he adores this show and has let the “grouchy” facade fade to where he doesn’t hold back talking about how much he loves the craft of acting. He was unabashedly emotional when receiving SAG-AFTRA’s Life Achievement Award at this year’s Actor Awards.

I wanted to share a few recent videos from a “Shrinking” Q&A I hosted that showcase all of what I’ve discussed above. The conversation was with the cast at the SAG-AFTRA Foundation and I always like to start by asking actors how they got their SAG card. Ford couldn’t remember what the project was, but he did drop this hilarious story about having to go by “Harrison J. Ford” for sometime.

The “Jesus” remark became a bit of an ongoing joke - as did Ford’s experience. In another moment, Tennie compared how the ensemble is always ready to go to the Japanese anime “Dragon Ball Z.” He got very passionate with his metaphor and Ford didn’t even try to hide his confusion (in fairness, I was lost, too.)

Finally, when discussing how hard it is to keep a straight face on such a fun set, I couldn’t tell if Ford enjoyed or was annoyed by the antics. This is when they all revealed that he is the worst offender, always playing pranks and messing around. In asking Harrison Jesus Ford to defend himself, he instead got emotional talking about what the group means to him and how he’s still finding new ways to love acting.

Watch the entire conversation at the link below and for crying out loud, let’s stop taking his comedic genius for granted and finally recognize one of the best performances on television.