'This Is Us': 5 intriguing fan theories about the season 2 finale
It wouldn't be This Is Us without soul-crushing twists, and tonight's season finale will likely pack a punch.
The sophomore finale, simply titled "The Wedding," takes place at Kate and Toby's nuptials, with members of the Pearson clan gathering together to see the couple down the aisle. And somehow, Jack -- who died in 1998 -- makes an appearance at the wedding ceremony looking much older than we're used to. Ever since the trailer was released last week, fans have theorized and hypothesized possible explanations for Jack's "surprise" return, with some of the more outrageous theories ranging from Jack faking his own death to it actually being Jack's presumed dead younger brother, Nicky.
"You will know why I am in aged Jack makeup," Milo Ventimiglia told ET's Leanne Aguilera on Monday at the South by Southwest finale presentation in Austin, Texas. "I don't want to tease anything other than you've seen the photos. Just be excited and enjoy."
So what lies ahead for the Pearsons on Tuesday's anticipated season finale? ET scoured the Internet to highlight the five most intriguing theories that may explain why Jack is an old man, and if we should be worried about the fates of other beloved members of the family.
1. Rebecca dies.
This Is Us fans have spent the season coming to terms with Jack’s death and are now waiting for the next shoe to drop. Theories have been swirling that the Pearson clan is about to deal with another major loss in the family, and Rebecca and Beth seem to be the most popular targets of these devastating theories. There could even be a plausible reason to think Deja or Deja's mom, Shauna, may be in danger. (The last episode didn't shy away from the presence of the gun Shauna's boyfriend kept close by.)
“Geez, guys! Wow, why are you trying to kill everybody off?” Mandy Moore exclaimed to ET at the show’s SXSW finale presentation, claiming she hadn’t heard any rumors. “That would be news to me. I’m gonna say probably no to that, but who knows? I’m just unaware perhaps.”
Ventimiglia, however, was much less reassuring: “I expect that over the course of the show there may be more deaths than just Jack and William, but we'll see. We'll see what happens.”
While another death or terminal disease would be devastating, the morbid truth remains that it would make a lot of sense for Rebecca to see Jack’s welcoming face if she were to succumb to some kind of illness (and remember, she had that cancer scare all those years ago). It would also contextualize Jack's potentially telling words to Rebecca, when he says, "Where'd the time go, Bec?"
Maybe Rebecca dies, and she sees Jack in heaven???!!!#ThisIsUspic.twitter.com/xbRvDJRFxv
— Kristen Redmond (@Kristen_1_ca) March 7, 2018
So my only explanation for the #ThisIsUs trailer twist is that Rebecca is going to die in the middle of Kate's Wedding next week.
Because the only other explanation is "Multiverses are real."— Undead Ani Bundel (@anibundel) March 7, 2018
Crazy #thisisus theory what if something happens to Rebecca and that’s why she sees Jack? Like she almost dies? Or maybe she will die... 😩😩
— 𝚉𝚎𝚕𝚍𝚊 (@SoNotHcr) March 7, 2018
I’m terrified Mandy Moore is going to die at Kate’s wedding and that’s why she sees old jack in heaven and if so I can’t handle another death after seeing jack die this season & Randall’s Dad last season. #ThisIsUs
— Katelyn Pedoto (@katelyn_noell) March 11, 2018
2. Kate envisions what her wedding day would be like with Jack there.
While the finale preview seems to show Jack speaking to Rebecca, what if the whole moment is a figment of Kate’s imagination? The father-daughter duo have one of the strongest connections in the Pearson family, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Kate was so desperate to have her dad present on her big day that she imagined, just for a moment, that he was.
It certainly would make sense for an older Jack to appear in Kate's visions, as she's the last member of the grown-up Big Three to share a moment with papa Pearson. Back in November, Chrissy Metz told ET that she and the writers "talk about it" a lot. "I have my dream idea," she said at the time. It certainly would make sense for that dream idea to be wedding-related, wouldn't it?
There is no way that jack isnt dead. It obviously has to be a vision or whatever you want to call it. Kevin and Randall both had visions of their father, now it's kate's turn #ThisIsUs
— Maria Ann (@MARIADEEF96) March 7, 2018
Tbh I hope #ThisIsUs doesn't overdo it with dead old Jack's presence in the finale. I think the sweetest thing they could have done is Kate seeing Jack as he lovingly looks at her, watching her wedding from the sidelines.
— Johanna (@straythoughts22) March 12, 2018
3. Jack didn't actually die.
Bear with us. We know we’ve seen Jack’s body lying in the hospital -- well, a blurry image from afar of Jack's body. We know Rebecca was there right after the doctors tried -- and failed -- to save his life. But what it? WHAT IF?
Some of the most out-there conspiracy theories posit that Jack faked his death, possibly to return to the solitude he sought when trying to get sober earlier this season. But there’s just no way he could stay away for Kate’s wedding. (There’s gotta be a chance!)
@ThisIsUsWriters I have an idea. What if Jack was a secret agent and they had to fake his death and he is actually alive? #ThisIsUspic.twitter.com/iOWLLDtbQh
— Claudia. (@ClauGallagher) March 12, 2018
Wait... wait... wait... how is Jack alive next week? Wait... nah... I'm not ready.
Mi nah readiiiiii #ThisIsUs— M’BlockU (@rodimusprime) March 11, 2018
After watching the promo I think (I really hope) that Jack is still alive and his death was just a dream.
And this photo is the main reason for this thought, because before his death he was “only thinking and planning” for Big Three Homes #ThisIsUspic.twitter.com/v8vLv17gcj— Kanarya (@_MaiAli) March 9, 2018
4. That's really Nicky, Jack's younger brother.
OK, stay with us. It's a bit of a stretch, but one theory floating around is the revelation that that's actually not Jack with Rebecca, but his younger brother, Nicky, previously thought to have died in the Vietnam War. One clue that could possibly corroborate this theory, or at least give it some legs -- however nutty it may seem -- is the fact that Jack (or Nicky) is wearing metal-rimmed glasses, a signature identifier that the show established earlier this season as differentiating Jack from Nicky when they were younger.
Are we completely bonkers for going down this route? Maybe. But we're not alone in thinking this could be a shocking reality.
My theory: The promo scene from next weeks episode of “this is us “ is not Jack’s Ghost but is instead Jack’s long lost brother, Nicky, who we saw in the photo from Vietnam, and is presumed dead but instead had disconnected from jack & family and returned for Kate’s wedding.
— mr. mario (@Cgualtie) March 8, 2018
#thisisus prediction: Nicky isn't dead. Maybe Jack thinks he died but Nicky's alive, even in the adult!Big Three era. And, they'll meet him.
— i have a great personality (@falsewings) February 25, 2018
5. It's an alternate universe.
Jack’s still alive somewhere, right? RIGHT?
But seriously, many beloved TV shows have explored the alternate universe theory through “What if?” episodes, where fans get to see how the characters’ lives would have played out under different circumstances. Somewhere, there’s a world where Jack Pearson got to walk his “Bug” down the aisle, and in that world, we just bought stock in Kleenex because we’re about to cry a thousand tears.
Alternate universe Jack. This is turning into an episode of LOST. Wait...who was the leader on the island in LOST? ...JACK!
— Justin Credible (@GravySauceCream) March 7, 2018
OMG OLD JACK! IM CRY! Let’s just make season 3 all with an alternate universe where jack lives #ThisIsUs
— Deanna 🌼 (@deannafooreal) March 7, 2018
The This Is Us season two finale airs Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.
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