If there’s one thing fans have been wondering since the Season 2 finale of “This Is Us,” it’s who the mysterious “her” is that older Randall and Tess need to see.
According to star Mandy Moore, clues as to who the mystery woman is will come as soon as Season 3’s first episode.
“There’s something that doesn’t involve my character that’s a bit of a twist in the first episode that people are going to be like, “Whaaa…?’” Moore told Entertainment Weekly in an interview published Friday. When EW asked Moore to elaborate, she warned that “It’s not heartwarming.” Honestly, we wouldn’t expect anything less than tear-jerking moments from this show at this point.
“People are going to be like, “Whaaa…? Why? How? What?” [Laughs.] At least I was, and I knew that it was coming, but still, when you read it, you’re like, “No. Whaaa…?” so that’s pretty interesting,” Moore continued. “I think Dan [Fogelman, the creator] has talked a lot about figuring out who [Randall] is talking about. I think that every episode is offering a more fully realized picture of who that is. It’s not being dragged for the sake of being cheeky. I think it’s just really brilliant storytelling and, Dan’s old favorite way of describing the show is the mixed up videotapes of home videos. This is exactly that, but we’re leaning a little bit into the future aspect of it.”
As for the past aspect of the show, Season 3 will dive right into the lives of the Pearson family after Jack’s death.
“It’s a s—show at home, and everybody is off the rails. Life is not going smoothly. Everything’s falling apart,” Moore said in the interview, adding that Rebecca might have a tough time as a single parent, at least at first: “It’s dealing with the bigger crises that arise in the kids’ personal lives that she’s maybe not as adept at dealing with.”
Moore also hinted that some of the more fun-loving characters will see some darker moments in the upcoming third season.
“There’s turmoil for some characters that might have had some lighter moments, especially towards the end of the season, that you’re like, ‘Oh, okay, yeah, this is real life,’” she said. “I maybe wasn’t expecting that, but I feel like we’re all exchanging roles in some senses. The lightness you’ve come expect from some characters may be plagued with some heavier themes this season and vice versa. I like that because it’s true to life.”
So while Rebecca will have plenty of heavy moments to grapple with, there will also be plenty of “romanticism with the early Jack-and-Rebecca years,” Moore added. We can’t wait to see Jack and Rebecca’s first date.
Fans are sure to be in for another emotional ride, but Moore says it will all be worth it: “I know that every show always says, ‘Well, this is the best season yet!’ but I kind of feel like it is.”
“This Is Us” Season 3 premieres Sept. 25 on NBC.