After what feels like the longest hiatus ever, we're finally less than two weeks away from the return of This Is Us!
To celebrate, E! News is here to debut this exclusive featurette and first look at season two, which picks up "the very next morning" after Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca's (Mandy Moore) big fight, according to Moore.
In the present day storylines, Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) and Randall (Sterling K. Brown) are contemplating adoption, Kate and Toby (Chris Sullivan) have moved in together, and Kevin (Justin Hartley) is at a crossroads between his movie and his reignited relationship with Sophie (Alexandra Breckenridge).
"There's change afoot," Ventimiglia says. "You see the good, you see the bad, you see it all starting to come together, or you see it all really go the other way and fall completely apart."
The featurette also finds the cast reflecting on why the show made such an impact so quickly.
"I didn't even realize what the title of the show meant until I got into a dialogue with the audience," Sullivan says, "That 'we watch the show, and we sit on the couch and we're like, yeah, this is us. This is our family. This is my father, this is my sister, this is me. This is us.'"
For all the scoop on season two (including what and when we're going to learn about Jack's death), scroll on down!
After what feels like the longest absence ever, This Is Us will finally return Tuesday, September 26—just a few days after potentially winning a few Emmys on September 17. The show is nominated for best drama, best makeup, and best cassting, and Milo Ventimiglia, Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz, Ron Cephas Jones, Denis O'Hare, Brian Tyree Henry, and Gerald McRaney are all nominated in acting categories.
(Note: McRaney already won the award for Guest Actor, which was announced at the Creative Arts Emmys on September 10)
While it doesn't sound like we'll be getting the full story of Jack's death right away, the premiere will feature "a big, giant piece of the puzzle that will potentially set the internet abuzz, but hopefully give some momentum to that storyline," creator Dan Fogelman teased.
Ventimiglia has said we'll find out more than just a piece of the puzzle at some point this season…which will only lead us to more questions. So get both your tissues and your thinking caps ready for this roller coaster.
For Jack and Rebecca, season two picks up right where season one left off, with Jack leaving after their big argument. Ventimiglia teased that those two "have a long, uneven, unpaved road to get back to being better."
In present day, season two will catch up with the Big 3 just before their 37th birthdays, meaning the show will be skipping ahead just a few months from where we left off.
Season two will further explore Randall's adoption idea, which he's all in on, but Beth's not so convinced. A scene shown at the TCA press tour revealed that Randall goes to his mother to ask how his adoption went, and it's about as emotional as you'd expect.
Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) will be getting some huge stories this year, especially as she and Randall explore adopting a baby. We'll be getting to know her and her history in a much "deeper" way than we did in season one.
Kate is "doing things that she's wanted to do for so long," according to Chrissy Metz. That includes some singing, but she's not immediately going to become a star. "There's a lot of growth to happen," she said.
Kevin's going to be working in the big leagues with the big leagues in season two. He'll be starring in a war movie alongside Sylvester Stallone, who's guest starring as himself thanks to his former costar, Milo Ventimiglia.
Stallone will play a sort of father figure to Kevin, which obviously brings up his relationship with his real father, Jack.
Not only will Kevin be starring in a war movie alongside Sylvester Stallone, but he's also still going to be rekindling his romance with his ex-wife, Sophie (Alexandra Breckenridge), who has been promoted to a series regular. That means we'll get to watch them continue to reconnect while we also learn exactly how things went bad the first time.
Mandy Moore will be spending a lot more time in the makeup chair this season, since we'll be getting to know present day Rebecca and her relationships with her adult children incredibly well.
Congrats, Jon Huertas! He's been upped to a series regular role in season two, meaning we're going to be seeing a lot more Miguel. And yeah, that doesn't sound great right now but apparently we're gonna grow to love him...
Fogelman is pretty sure we're all going to warm up to Rebecca's present day husband, but "it's going to take a moment." We'll take your word for it, Dan.
All of the child and teen versions of the Big 3--Hannah Zeile, Niles Fitch, Logan Shroyer, Mackenzie Hancsicsak, Parker Bates, Faithe Herman, and Eris Baker—have been promoted to series regulars in season two, save for Lonnie Chavis, who plays little Randall...but that's only because he's also starring in another show. He's not going anywhere!
We may have seen William die, but there's a lot more of his life to explore. Dan Fogelman said he put a note at the end of the "Memphis" script, promising that Ron Cephas Jones would still be a part of the show.
Aside from Sly Stallone, Dan Lauria and Debra Jo Rupp are also both set to appear in the second season, though details about their characters are not yet known.