This Is Us
This Is Us is an American drama television series created by Dan Fogelman that aired on NBC from September 20, 2016, to May 24, 2022. The series follows the lives and families of two parents and their three children in several different timeframes. It stars an ensemble cast featuring Milo Ventimiglia, Mandy Moore, Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz, Justin Hartley, Susan Kelechi Watson, Chris Sullivan, Ron Cephas Jones, Jon Huertas, Alexandra Breckenridge, Niles Fitch, Logan Shroyer, Hannah Zeile, Mackenzie Hancsicsak, Parker Bates, Eris Baker, Faithe Herman, Lonnie Chavis, Melanie Liburd, Lyric Ross, Asante Blackk, Griffin Dunne, Caitlin Thompson and Chris Geere. This Is Us was filmed in Los Angeles.
In September 2016, NBC picked up the series for a full season of 18 episodes. In January 2017, NBC renewed the series for two additional seasons of 18 episodes each, and then in May 2019, it was renewed for three more seasons. In May 2021, it was announced that the sixth would be its final season, which premiered on January 4, 2022.
Series overview
The series follows the Pearson family over multiple decades. Siblings Kevin, Kate and Randall are followed in the present day, while non-linear flashbacks show their childhood and young adult lives with their parents, Jack and Rebecca. Kevin and Kate are the two surviving members of triplets, born six weeks premature on Jack's 36th birthday in 1980; their brother Kyle was stillborn. Believing they were meant to have three children, Jack and Rebecca decide to adopt Randall, an African American boy born earlier that day and brought to the same hospital after his biological father William Hill abandoned him at a fire station. Jack dies when his children are 17 due to a heart attack during a fire at their home. Rebecca later marries Jack's best friend Miguel.Randall becomes a successful finance professional and marries college classmate Beth; they raise two daughters and later adopt an older girl, Deja. Kevin becomes a successful actor while struggling to be taken seriously. After lacking direction much of her life and struggling with obesity, Kate meets and marries Toby, pursues a career in music, gets a degree, and becomes a mother.
Most episodes feature a storyline taking place in the present and a storyline taking place at a set time in the past. Some episodes are set in one time period or use multiple flashback time periods. Flashbacks often focus on Jack and Rebecca circa 1980, both before and after their children's birth, or on the family when the big three are children or adolescents, and are played by two sets of younger actors; these scenes usually take place in Pittsburgh, where the big three and their parents are born and raised.
As adults, their homes vary more widely: Kate lives in Los Angeles, Randall and his family are in New Jersey and later Philadelphia, and Kevin relocates from Los Angeles to New York City and back again, with a brief return to western Pennsylvania along the way. Various other time periods and locations have also served as settings. Some episodes have focused on the earlier experiences of other characters, including Randall's family members William, Deja, and Beth. Beginning in the second season, the show also uses occasional flashforwards to a later time period, where the family gather before Rebecca's death. In the second half of the final season, the contemporary narrative advances over several years to meet the flashforwards' time period.
Cast and characters
- Milo Ventimiglia as Jack Pearson: Rebecca's first husband, Kate and Kevin's biological father, and Randall's adoptive father. He's also the grandfather to Deja, Tess, Annie Pearson, Jack and Hailey Damon, and Franny and Nick Pearson, and the great-grandfather to Hope Damon and William Hodges. Jack dies from a heart attack caused by smoke inhalation when his children are seventeen.
- *Also portrayed by Joaquin Obradors as a child.
- Mandy Moore as Rebecca Pearson : Jack's and Miguel's wife; Kate and Kevin's biological mother, and Randall's adoptive mother, grandmother to Deja, Tess and Annie Pearson, Hailey and Jack Damon, and Nicholas and Franny Pearson, and great-grandmother to Hope Damon.
- *Also portrayed by Ava Castro and Kya Kruse as a child.
- Sterling K. Brown as Randall Pearson: Jack and Rebecca's adopted son, Kate and Kevin's adopted brother; Beth's husband, Tess, Annie and Deja's father, William Hill and Laurel Dubois biological son, and Jack and Hailey Damon's and Franny and Nick Pearson's uncle.
- *Also portrayed by Niles Fitch , Lonnie Chavis , and Caron Coleman .
- Chrissy Metz as Kate Pearson: Jack and Rebecca's biological daughter, Kevin's biological twin sister, and Randall's adoptive sister; Jack and Hailey Damon's mother, Phillip's wife; Deja, Tess, Annie, Franny, and Nick's aunt; Toby's ex-wife.
- *Also portrayed by Hannah Zeile , Mackenzie Hancsicsak , and Isabella Rose Landau .
- Justin Hartley as Kevin Pearson: Jack and Rebecca's biological son; Kate's biological twin brother, and Randall's adoptive brother, father to Nick and Franny, husband to Sophie, and uncle to Deja, Tess and Annie Pearson, and Jack and Hailey Damon. Kevin is also Madison Simons ex fiance.
- *Also portrayed by Logan Shroyer , Parker Bates , and Kaz Womack .
- Susan Kelechi Watson as Beth Pearson: Randall's wife, and mother of Deja, Tess and Annie.
- *Also portrayed by Rachel Hilson and Akira Akbar.
- Chris Sullivan as Toby Damon: Kate's first husband and father of Hailey and Jack Damon.
- *Also portrayed by Luke Clark as a teenager, and Dylan Gage as a child.
- Ron Cephas Jones as William "Shakespeare" Hill: Randall's biological father.
- *Also portrayed by Jermel Nakia as a young adult.
- Jon Huertas as Miguel Rivas: Jack's best friend and Rebecca's second husband.
- Alexandra Breckenridge as Sophie Inman: Kate's childhood best friend, as well as Kevin's childhood love and wife.
- *Also portrayed by Amanda Leighton, Sophia Coto, and Kai Trueblood Fall.
- Eris Baker as Tess Pearson: Randall and Beth's older daughter.
- *Also portrayed by Iantha Richardson as a young adult.
- Faithe Herman as Annie Pearson: Randall and Beth's younger daughter.
- *Also portrayed by Iyana Halley as a young adult
- Melanie Liburd as Zoe Baker: Beth's cousin and Kevin's ex-girlfriend.
- *Also portrayed by Brianna Reed as a teenager and Dakota Baccelli as a child.
- Lyric Ross as Deja Pearson: Randall and Beth's adopted daughter
- *Also portrayed by Makenzie Lee-Foster as a child.
- *Also portrayed by La Trice Harper as a young adult
- Griffin Dunne as Nicholas "Nicky" Pearson: Jack's brother and Kevin, Kate and Randall's uncle.
- *Also portrayed by Michael Angarano as a young adult, and Donnie Masihi as a child.
- Asante Blackk as Malik Hodges: Deja's classmate and later boyfriend; has an infant daughter from a prior romantic relationship..
- Caitlin Thompson as Madison Simons: Kate's best friend, and Kevin's ex-fiancé and mother of his twins, Franny and Nick.
- Chris Geere as Philip: Kate's co-worker and second husband.
Episodes
Production
Development
This is Us originally began as an 80-page movie script that Dan Fogelman was developing while working for ABC Studios in the spring of 2015. The story line, which Fogelman admitted to not having a definite direction, revolved around the lives of eight adults who, as it would be revealed, were octuplets. After moving to an eight-figure deal with 20th Century Fox Television, Fogelman made the decision to develop a television series from the characters of his original script, cutting a few characters and shortening the script to 45 pages before bringing it to the studio. Jennifer Salke, president at NBC, commented on the conception of a title for the series, saying "The title didn't come easy... but This Is Us tapped into everything, and the show's about us." It has been revealed that other ideas for the title included 36, Happy Birthday, and The Story of Us.Despite positive reviews from both 20th Century Fox Television and its sister company, Fox, there were concerns regarding risk of attracting an audience, and Fox sold it to NBC. Fox did so because NBC promised to use the high volume of viewers from The Voice and the Summer Olympics to bring additional viewers to the series, and Fox wanted to solidify the reputation of its studio among writers and directors as placing shows where they are most likely to succeed, even if it is not Fox.
On September 27, 2016, NBC picked up the series for a full season of 18 episodes. In January 2017, NBC renewed the series for two additional seasons of 18 episodes each. The second season premiered on September 26, 2017. The third season premiered on September 25, 2018. In May 2019, NBC renewed the series for three additional seasons. The fourth season premiered on September 24, 2019. The fifth season premiered on October 27, 2020. On May 12, 2021, it was announced that the series would conclude with the sixth season. Production wrapped on May 3, 2022.