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The Powerful Reason the Final Scene of This Is Us Was of Jack and Young Randall
The show creator Dan Fogelman explains everything.
This Is Us ended on May 24, 2022 in the warmest, most heartfelt way. The episode, titled "Us," centered on a regular, lazy Saturday for the Pearsons in the '80s/'90s. There was no major drama — just family, love, and togetherness.
That's quite literally how the show ended. The last-ever shot of This Is Us was of young Randall (Lonnie Chavis) sitting on the couch and smiling at his dad, Jack (Milo Ventimiglia). The camera then focuses on Jack, who smiles back at Randall before looking at the rest of his family. It's a simple shot, but it managed to encapsulate so much. After all, this is a show about the bond, resilience, and unconditional love of one family. And all of those attributes were present in Jack's eyes in this scene.
But why was it chosen as the final moment of This Is Us? The show's creator, Dan Fogelman, explained the reason on a call with reporters.
"In that shot [right before the scene with young Randall and Jack], older Randall is indicative of, obviously, the grown children or a child who has fully grown, and Milo in that moment [in the final scene] is representing a parent who's taking in his entire family," Fogelman says. "I just wanted the simplicity of the shot of the child taking in the parent at a moment when the parent is taking in something bigger and knowing that child will carry it forward in their own lives. It was less in that exact moment about these two men who have been cornerstones of our show, obviously — but it was less about Randall and Jack, and it was more about child and parent in that moment."
On the finale as a whole, Fogelman told NBC Insider, "We want [the finale] to be a bit of a hug for our audience who's watched the show for the last four or five or six years. And I think we did it. I hope it makes people feel something and reflect on their lives and families."
Where to watch This Is Us
Watch every episode of This Is Us on NBC.com. Also: Relive some of the show's best moments here on NBC's This Is Us: The Final Chapter digital experience.
