‘This Is Us’: Milo Ventimiglia Unveils More Details on Randall’s Timeline Jump

Sunday’s special Super Bowl episode of This Is Us brought a season’s worth of mystique surrounding Jack Pearson’s (Milo Ventimiglia) death to a close, as viewers finally learned that Jack survived the fire that destroyed the Pearson family home only to die hours later of a heart attack from complications of smoke inhalation.

But with the emotional episode, viewers were introduced to a new twist: glimpses into the Pearson family’s future. Ventimiglia spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about that special scene with future Randall (Sterling K. Brown) and future adult Tess (Iantha Richardson), where Tess is working as a social worker placing children into foster care.

Ventimiglia says it’s about time the show reached the point where it can stretch into the future instead of just dwelling on the past.

“I’m just happy we finally got to that point. [Show creator Dan Fogelman] was talking about flashing forward to a younger one of [Randall’s kids] … since the second episode that we filmed. So I’m happy that we’ve made it to that point where the audience understands it’s not just about going back in the past but it’s about stretching out the future,” Ventimiglia said.

He added that the flash-forward reminded him of the special speech Kevin (Justin Hartley) gave during episode five of season one.

“It’s like Kevin’s speech at the end of episode five of the first season. It’s the painting — we’re all included, whether before we’re born or after we’ve died. We’re all always in the painting.”

Ventimiglia also touched on the fact that he’s “100 percent relieved” the episode that shows Jack’s death is finally out of the way.

“I’m happy that the audience now knows because they’ve asked the question for so long now, but at the same time my heart breaks,” he said, adding that there are still secrets about Jack left to uncover — so don’t expect him to be a less significant character any time soon.

“And now everybody’s asking the question of, ‘Well, wait a minute, where are we going now? What’s Jack up to now? What’s happening? I don’t understand. Are you still on the show?’ So I’m happy that a larger piece of that is out of the way, but there are still secrets to uncover and things to know about this man, this patriarch of the family,” he said vaguely.

One of those secrets about Jack’s life? Possibly his younger brother, Nicky, who viewers know was deployed in Vietnam with Jack — and who might have not made it through.

“It’s been a question, what Jack’s younger life was like, what his influences on having a positive family experience were,” the actor said. “A lot of that relies on his relationship with his brother and what they experienced in the house they grew up in.”

“For Jack and Nicky, I think a lot of that probably will be played not so much on younger child actors that are playing those parts that will rely on myself and another actor stepping into the shoes of Nicky — their time as young men, their time in Vietnam, the knowledge that maybe Nicky didn’t quite make it,” Ventimiglia shared.

Fans who thought they might be through the most emotional part of the season after seeing Jack’s death might be wrong, as Ventimiglia says Tuesday night’s episode is “still a doozy.”

“Imagine there’s the immediate knowledge and shock of a hearing of a loved one’s passing and then you know that you need to prepare yourself for the funeral. That’s pretty much what you’re up against,” he hinted.

Meanwhile, Mandy Moore (Rebecca Pearson) says Tuesday’s episode is “even more heartbreaking.”

Photos of Moore, Logan Shroyer (teenage Kevin), Hannah Zeile (teenage Kate) and Niles Fitch (teenage Randall) dressed in all black surfaced last week, leading many fans to posit that Jack’s funeral was on its way to America’s screens.