Mandy Moore has revealed the secrets behind the scenes of the finale This Is Us.
The final episode of the beloved NBC drama aired in the United States on Tuesday night, and after a penultimate heartbreaking episode that focused on the death of Mandy’s character, Rebecca Pearson, the end was full of poignant family flashbacks.
After the credits, Mandy explained how series creator Dan Fogelman and his team had planned how the show would end years ago, with flashback scenes with the Pearson kids filmed in 2018.
We’re Family: Mandy Moore has revealed the secrets behind the scenes in the finale This Is Us, explaining how flashback scenes were shot with the Pearson kids in 2018 (pictured with Mackenzie Hancsicsak, Milo Ventimiglia, Parker Bates and Lonnie Chavis on set)
Fans had pointed out the meticulous way to plan the finale as they watched the final episode, which featured scenes showing the Big Three as they entered their teens.
The three actors who played the Pearson brothers as children are now 14 years old, and so to capture the right ages for the children’s final flashback scenes, Fogelman shot the sequences during the filming of the fourth season in 2018.
The final episode of the sixth season featured a touching scene between Milo Ventimiglia and his two sons Kevin and Randall, played by Parker Bates and Lonnie Chavis as he taught them how to shave along with some life lessons.
Flashbacks: The three actors who played the Pearson brothers as children are now 14 years old, and so to capture the right ages for the children’s final flashback scenes, the sequences were shot during the filming of the fourth season on 2018.
First and last day on set: Parker shared a photo of himself and his siblings on screen on his first day on set when they were just eight years old and one made at the recent wrapping party.
The episode also featured Mackenzie Hancsicsak as Kate as the Pearsons spent a quiet weekend together at home.
On Tuesday night, Mandy shared a series of photos with her husband and children on screen, taken when the scenes were filmed three years ago, she said:
“The kids … are growing up really fast, and 3 years ago, while we were shooting season 4, we started filming the end of tonight’s series. Look at these babies !! #It’s us. ‘
This Is Us’s official Instagram account commented: “Literally YEARS in process.”
Memories: On Tuesday night, Mandy shared a series of photos with her husband and children on screen, taken when the final scenes were filmed three years ago.
Parker, Mackenzie and Lonnie were only eight years old when they were chosen as the Big Three in the first season.
The now teenagers shared their memories of their years on set on Tuesday, posting photos of the recent wrapping party along with snapshots of their first day on set.
Speaking to Variety this week, Mandy admitted that watching the final scenes that were filmed in 2018 was “weird” because she didn’t remember filming them.
Final Scenes Together: The final episode showed the Pearson family spending a lazy weekend together at home
Looking back: Speaking to Variety this week, Mandy admitted that watching the final scenes that were filmed in 2018 was “weird” because she didn’t remember filming them.
She said: “I saw him for the first time yesterday and I really had no recollection of him. It was one of the strangest experiences … I remember thinking. [while filming]these are very beautiful scenes, but they could also be part of any episode, and maybe that’s why they never stuck in my mind.
“It was a revelation to the audience that saw it the other day, like,‘ Oh, that’s what we did. ’I didn’t really remember it, it was a long time ago.
Mandy also talked about her working relationship with Milo during the interview, and admitted that “never, never” will she have another partnership like this on screen.
Filming: He said about the filming of the final family scenes: “I saw it for the first time yesterday and I really didn’t remember it. It was one of the strangest experiences.”
The End: Mandy shared a series of photos of herself and Milo of the day filming the flashback scenes for the end of Tuesday that focused on the message of living in the present.
Remember this: Reflecting on the 2018 shoot, Mandy said, “It was a revelation with the audience watching it the other day, like, ‘Oh, that’s what we did.’ I didn’t really remember it.”
She said she and her co-star, who played her husband on screen Jack Pearson, had a “once in a lifetime” connection that she doesn’t think can be replicated.
“It was effortless from the beginning and effortless to the end,” Mandy explained. “I admit that I will never, ever have a partner on screen like Milo again. It’s so rare to connect with someone of this level. In every sense, this job was once in a lifetime.”
During the final scenes of the show, Milo introduced contraband fabrics to the set to wipe away the tears of his lead partner, and the couple had to use breaks during filming to move the props to hide the signs of the Mandy’s excitement.
Touching: The final episode of This Is Us was a tenuous and thoughtful affair after the death of Mandy’s character in the penultimate installment.
Sweet Moments: The episode focused on the Pearson family’s day-to-day moments and Rebecca and Milo’s message to remember the “little moments”
He told Variety, “Sweet Milo had a ball of cloth under my pillow for me.”
“At each dam, Milo helped me very carefully to turn the pillow around so I wouldn’t see the stains of tears. We were just trying to set up the pillow every dam to make sure you couldn’t see where Mandy had been crying!
“I would hand over my little pack of tissue to wipe away the tears. It was so indicative of our relationship and the way we always leaned and supported each other.”
Partnership: Mandy also talked about her working relationship with Milo during the interview, and admitted that “never, never” will she have another partnership like this on screen.
Mandy added that she was grateful that the final episodes were filmed out of order.
She said, “It would have been impossible to do any of the train stuff with Milo in the end.” It would have been a crying mess.
Although the singer and actress plans a break before finding her next job, she insisted that what comes next will be “really different” from family drama.
She said: “I want to give myself some time and distance to find out what the next step is and finally [try] something really different. I don’t know what that is right now, I don’t know how to define it, but obviously I think we’ve all marked the whole family drama. It won’t be any better than that, so why not try something completely different.
“I’m excited to take a moment and find out what that is and hopefully something that is just as challenging and in a totally different direction.”
Final Scenes: During her final scenes of the show, Milo introduced contraband fabrics to the set to wipe away the tears of her co-star.