“When somebody passes away, everyone asks themselves questions like, ‘Man, if I had probably talked to them more…’ or ‘If I had maybe not asked for so much….’” Brown tells EW. “Everybody has a way of internalizing their grief sometimes to make it seem as if they could’ve done something to change things. I would say this is a mind of a 16-year-old who’s now 36, but you can’t help but relate to it from age 16, so however mature you are, there’s certain ways in which your development has been arrested. There is a reason that she believes that, and it’s understandable from my perspective, but I also have a level of grace with her as her brother to recognize that nothing is ever anybody’s fault.”
Are there any hints Brown can drop about how powerful that moment will be whenever we do wind up finding out — and about how it might happen? “I think Jack died the way that he lived, by always trying to do the right thing,” says Brown carefully. “I think folks are going to be moved, and surprised, and it’s very, very sad. But I think that his death is in fitting with the type of father and the husband that he always tried to be, even when he fell short of the mark.”
Are there any hints Brown can drop about how powerful that moment will be whenever we do wind up finding out — and about how it might happen? “I think Jack died the way that he lived, by always trying to do the right thing,” says Brown carefully. “I think folks are going to be moved, and surprised, and it’s very, very sad. But I think that his death is in fitting with the type of father and the husband that he always tried to be, even when he fell short of the mark.”
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Why end this season on that note? Was that always what you'd envisioned?
This was always the episode we had planned. From the very first pitch, this was the ending we talked about for the first season. There are a lot of question as we leave this marriage in the most dire place it’s been.
Last week’s episode made it seem as though Jack would die in a car crash. Would that have been too devastating? When will Jack's death be explained?
It’s multifaceted. As we’ll see the setup that Kate talked about, how she feels responsible for Jack’s death, it’s not that that isn’t true. It’s just that the timing of that is now we’re starting to brace the audience that it’s coming and they should be ready for it. But it’s not necessarily going to happen in a way that people may or may not be expecting.
This was always the episode we had planned. From the very first pitch, this was the ending we talked about for the first season. There are a lot of question as we leave this marriage in the most dire place it’s been.
Last week’s episode made it seem as though Jack would die in a car crash. Would that have been too devastating? When will Jack's death be explained?
It’s multifaceted. As we’ll see the setup that Kate talked about, how she feels responsible for Jack’s death, it’s not that that isn’t true. It’s just that the timing of that is now we’re starting to brace the audience that it’s coming and they should be ready for it. But it’s not necessarily going to happen in a way that people may or may not be expecting.
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It does end on a note of hope for the children — Kate talking about pursuing a singing career is particularly poignant.
Moore: Kate can carry the torch for her mom. Clearly, I don’t think it happened for Rebecca, which is really sad. As a woman, this a woman who had so much promise. And she didn’t have the support of her friends. She gets rejected by the record company. One defeat after another. The ultimate defeat, years later, she’s having this second wind of going on tour for just a couple of weeks, just never comes fruition. The fact that Kate may be able to carry the torch for her mother is a beautiful addition to he story.
Ventimiglia: Randall adopting. Kate wanting to sing. Kevin’s won back his girl and moving back to Los Angeles. I felt that it was a beautiful ending. Like Jack said, it’s just the beginning. They really are setting up and paying off without it feeling like a big cliffhanger. This looks exciting, this looks engaging. I really can’t wait.
Moore: Kate can carry the torch for her mom. Clearly, I don’t think it happened for Rebecca, which is really sad. As a woman, this a woman who had so much promise. And she didn’t have the support of her friends. She gets rejected by the record company. One defeat after another. The ultimate defeat, years later, she’s having this second wind of going on tour for just a couple of weeks, just never comes fruition. The fact that Kate may be able to carry the torch for her mother is a beautiful addition to he story.
Ventimiglia: Randall adopting. Kate wanting to sing. Kevin’s won back his girl and moving back to Los Angeles. I felt that it was a beautiful ending. Like Jack said, it’s just the beginning. They really are setting up and paying off without it feeling like a big cliffhanger. This looks exciting, this looks engaging. I really can’t wait.
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We’re seeing a Jack in the past that’s very different than the Jack we’ve come to know.
The plan has always been that with Jack, we’ve created a bit of a modern-day superhero as a father and as a husband. Having seen glimpses of his background, that doesn’t necessarily grow out of nowhere. It comes from somewhere and there’s something that formed him. It would be overly simplified to say he’s always been exactly like this. In watching him at his most troubling time as a young man we still see the Jack and the good guy that he’s always been at his core. But we evolve as human beings. When we’re first meeting Jack as a 36-year-old guy with his children, he’s a different guy than he was a decade ago. He’s just back from war and having this tough spell and this tough upbringing. There’s part of us that we bury and this moment comes out a little bit. And we got a glimpse of it. We’ll get that eventually from all of our characters.
The plan has always been that with Jack, we’ve created a bit of a modern-day superhero as a father and as a husband. Having seen glimpses of his background, that doesn’t necessarily grow out of nowhere. It comes from somewhere and there’s something that formed him. It would be overly simplified to say he’s always been exactly like this. In watching him at his most troubling time as a young man we still see the Jack and the good guy that he’s always been at his core. But we evolve as human beings. When we’re first meeting Jack as a 36-year-old guy with his children, he’s a different guy than he was a decade ago. He’s just back from war and having this tough spell and this tough upbringing. There’s part of us that we bury and this moment comes out a little bit. And we got a glimpse of it. We’ll get that eventually from all of our characters.
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DEADLINE: What will Randall do after quitting his Wall Street job?
FOGELMAN: I don’t know that Randall is racing back into the workforce anytime soon. He’s determined to honor the legacy of his father(s), and I think his focus will be on adoption as we head into next season.
DEADLINE: In what ways can we expect to see William back?
FOGELMAN: In very much the same way we see Jack, even though Jack too is gone in present day. A core tenet of the show is that just because a person dies, it doesn’t mean they don’t remain in the fabric of the lives of their families. I plan on William and Ron [actor Ron Cephas Jones] being a big part of the series next year.
FOGELMAN: I don’t know that Randall is racing back into the workforce anytime soon. He’s determined to honor the legacy of his father(s), and I think his focus will be on adoption as we head into next season.
DEADLINE: In what ways can we expect to see William back?
FOGELMAN: In very much the same way we see Jack, even though Jack too is gone in present day. A core tenet of the show is that just because a person dies, it doesn’t mean they don’t remain in the fabric of the lives of their families. I plan on William and Ron [actor Ron Cephas Jones] being a big part of the series next year.
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Mandy, how did you craft Rebecca’s tear-stained look for the scenes the following morning?
Moore: I just cried all morning, pretty much. I literally got to set and was in hair and makeup and was listening to music and was sort of in my own head. And I cried and I cried and I cried and then I thought a lot about what would have been going through Rebecca’s head most of the night. I assumed that she slept maybe a solid two or three hours and really settled upon what she felt they needed to do as a couple and for herself and for this marriage. That’s not an easy decision to come to. When I cry, my eyes get really swollen so there was barely any makeup on me. And then I sort of dried my tears and tried to be as stoic as possible, because I felt that was where she was living in that moment.
Was Jack trying to get Rebecca to tell him to stay at the end with that great speech?
Ventimiglia: I don’t think he was convincing her to stay, I think he was leaving on a positive note. Jack knew that he crossed a line in attacking Ben (Sam Trammell). He knew the things that were said during the argument weren’t the most constructive to getting his marriage back to a good place. I don’t think Jack was expecting to be kicked out of his house but he’s a smart enough man to realize that him staying there would probably just aggravate the situation. They both need a little time and a little space. So giving that speech is, “Hey, I know we’re broken, but I know we can fix it. Things are tough right now, but I know we’re going to get back to a good place.”
Moore: I just cried all morning, pretty much. I literally got to set and was in hair and makeup and was listening to music and was sort of in my own head. And I cried and I cried and I cried and then I thought a lot about what would have been going through Rebecca’s head most of the night. I assumed that she slept maybe a solid two or three hours and really settled upon what she felt they needed to do as a couple and for herself and for this marriage. That’s not an easy decision to come to. When I cry, my eyes get really swollen so there was barely any makeup on me. And then I sort of dried my tears and tried to be as stoic as possible, because I felt that was where she was living in that moment.
Was Jack trying to get Rebecca to tell him to stay at the end with that great speech?
Ventimiglia: I don’t think he was convincing her to stay, I think he was leaving on a positive note. Jack knew that he crossed a line in attacking Ben (Sam Trammell). He knew the things that were said during the argument weren’t the most constructive to getting his marriage back to a good place. I don’t think Jack was expecting to be kicked out of his house but he’s a smart enough man to realize that him staying there would probably just aggravate the situation. They both need a little time and a little space. So giving that speech is, “Hey, I know we’re broken, but I know we can fix it. Things are tough right now, but I know we’re going to get back to a good place.”
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Do you think some fans though will be disappointed they didn’t get more about how Jack died? There is a big contingent of fans that is obsessed with that.
I think it’s sort of silly. I mean, why would they want to know it so early on in the show? We have at least 36 more episodes that we know of to tell this story, and I think it was really pretty smart of them to not let the cat out of the bag too soon. I remember, and you’d have to check with Dan or [executive producers] Isaac [Aptaker] and Elizabeth [Berger] on this. It was intentional because I think people know that he’s not alive present day, but there is a psychological shift. Once people know how he did pass, they’ll just be thinking about it every time he’s on screen, you know?
I think it’s sort of silly. I mean, why would they want to know it so early on in the show? We have at least 36 more episodes that we know of to tell this story, and I think it was really pretty smart of them to not let the cat out of the bag too soon. I remember, and you’d have to check with Dan or [executive producers] Isaac [Aptaker] and Elizabeth [Berger] on this. It was intentional because I think people know that he’s not alive present day, but there is a psychological shift. Once people know how he did pass, they’ll just be thinking about it every time he’s on screen, you know?
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Near the end of the last episode, Kate tells Toby, “It’s my fault that Jack died. I’m the reason he’s dead.” Is that true on any level, or is she just haunted by guilt that she probably shouldn’t feel?
Even though Jack doesn’t die in the drunk-driving accident like it might look like there, the basic thing I can say there is: When Kate says that to Toby, it’s very real. And if, hypothetically, Jack had died in this car crash having followed Kate’s advice to go see her mother, it will be the equivalent feeling when it does happen. Meaning that Kate does harbor the belief that she’s responsible. It’s not something that we threw in there to make a great ending of the episode. Kate’s side of it is definitely 100 percent how she feels, and what she carries.
Even though Jack doesn’t die in the drunk-driving accident like it might look like there, the basic thing I can say there is: When Kate says that to Toby, it’s very real. And if, hypothetically, Jack had died in this car crash having followed Kate’s advice to go see her mother, it will be the equivalent feeling when it does happen. Meaning that Kate does harbor the belief that she’s responsible. It’s not something that we threw in there to make a great ending of the episode. Kate’s side of it is definitely 100 percent how she feels, and what she carries.
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