The Season 5 finale of This Is Us ended with a surprise twist. The wedding finale was far from what we expected, just as is the trend on the show.
The emotional ending to the season came shortly after it was officially confirmed that Season 6 would be the final one for This Is Us.
In a chat with Variety, Creator Dan Fogelman answered the biggest burning questions about the finale episode and the upcoming final season.
It shouldn’t be a shocker for long-time viewers though, that Kevin and Madison don’t end up tying the knot. After all, their relationship began after a one-night stand led to twin babies. While the two didn’t get married in the present day of Season 5, Fogelman says it’s not entirely out of the question in the future.
Despite the heartbreak of that beautiful scene between them and the unusual breakup between them, clearly something is very right with them in that future timeline at the end of the episode.
A big thing driving us for next year is who will Kevin end up with? Will he wind up with anybody we know? Does he wind up with anybody at all? I think one way or another that question will be answered.
Dan Fogelman
The opening scene of Kevin rehearsing wedding jokes in formal wear turned out to be five years in the future at his twin sister Kate’s second wedding. There are two huge developments, Kate and Toby divorcing and Kate’s second wedding, to her boss, Phillip. Fogelman said he and his writers knew all along that Kate’s new boss was going to be her new flame.
“Kate’s second wedding, it’s been part of our plan all along. Obviously, we’ve hinted at many times in the deeper future that something was amiss between [Kate and Toby], and here we are.”
Dan Fogelman
Fogelman told The Hollywood Reporter during a call with reporters that they wanted to capture the vulnerable moments.
“Marriages don’t always survive. People don’t live forever. The balancing act of our show has always been in mixing the tragedies and the heartbreak of life with the joy and the beauty. They have to be able to coexist.”
Dan Fogelman
Rebecca and Miguel’s storyline will also play a significant role in the season besides the progression of Rebecca’s Alzheimer’s. Fogelman added that Mandy Moore, who plays Rebecca, will have a tremendously ambitious season next year as an actress.
“Obviously, as you’re traversing these timelines into the future and have a character battling Alzheimer’s, it’s going to be quite a ride.”
Dan Fogelman
As for Randall and Beth, their relationship isn’t in immediate trouble, but their bond will continue to evolve throughout the show’s final season. Viewers can expect to see Randall centered and balanced and being there to support his family. The final season could also see Randall’s political career taking off.
We always knew that Season 6 would be ambitious in terms of the way it jumps time. All of those timelines are going to be brought to completion and explained.
Everything will be resolved, and you can’t always claim that 100% of your audience is going to like every single decision you make for the characters, but I don’t think anything will be left on the table.
Dan Fogelman
For Season 6, much more of the story will take place in the two different future time periods the series has established: the new locale where Kate’s second wedding is occurring and the house where Rebecca is lying on her death bed.
Talking about his show’s wild popularity for making people cry, Fogelman said that he hopes that if people are crying at the end, it’s not because they’ve killed a beloved character at the last minute. But because there’s something beautiful being said about the human condition and what it is to be a family.
The final season of This Is Us, which has yet to reveal an episode count, will premiere in 2022.
| Cast | Character |
| Milo Ventimiglia | Jack Pearson |
| Mandy Moore | Rebecca Pearson |
| Sterling K. Brown | Randall Pearson |
| Chrissy Metz | Kate Pearson |
| Justin Hartley | Kevin Pearson |
| Susan Kelechi Watson | Beth Pearson |
| Chris Sullivan | Toby Damon |
| Eris Baker | Tess Pearson |
| Faithe Herman | Annie Pearson |
| Jon Huertas | Miguel Rivas |
| Mackenzie Hancsicsak | 10 Year Old Kate |
| Parker Bates | 10 Year Old Kevin |
| Hannah Zeile | 17 Year Old Kate |
| Lonnie Chavis | 12 Year Old Randall |
| Niles Fitch | 17 Year Old Randall |
| Logan Shroyer | 17 Year Old Kevin |
| Lyric Ross | Déjà Pearson |
| Ron Cephas Jones | William Hill |
| Caitlin Thompson | Madison |
About This Is Us
This Is Us is a Dan Fogelman-created American drama television series that debuted on NBC on September 20, 2016. On October 27, 2020, the fifth season will premiere. It was announced in May 2021 that the sixth season would be the series’ final.
The tv series follows the lives of three siblings, Kevin, Kate, and Randall (nicknamed the “Big Three”), along with their parents, Jack and Rebecca Pearson. It takes place primarily in the current time and employs flashbacks to illustrate their personal past.
Most episodes feature a storyline set in the present (2016–2021) and a storyline set at a particular time in the past; even so, some episodes are set in only one time period or use multiple flashback time periods. Flashbacks frequently centre on Jack and Rebecca in 1980, both before and after the birth of their children, or on the family when the Big Three are still children or adolescents (and played by two sets of younger actors).
No Comments on This Is Us Season 5 Ending Explained By Creator Dan Fogelman