Mandy Moore Was Totally Surprised to Learn This Story About This Is Us: "Really?!"
Jimmy Fallon even asked about it on The Tonight Show.
With over six emotional and suspenseful seasons, This Is Us never failed to deliver plenty of tears, courtesy of the Pearson family. While you always knew to keep a box of tissues close by, especially when we learned the fate of Jack Pearson, there are probably some behind-the-scenes details you might not know about the show.
This Is Us aired its final episode in May 2022 and even Mandy Moore, who played matriarch Rebecca Pearson, was totally surprised to learn a fun story about one of her co-stars, who credits themselves with helping inspire the name of NBC's award-winning drama.
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Mandy Moore was so surprised to learn this story about how This Is Us got its name
In NBC's behind-the-scenes clip with the This Is Us cast from 2022, the actors played a game called "Name That Co-Star" to find out how well they know each other. The game revealed some interesting tidbits, like how Chrissy Metz is the most likely to get emotional while watching any episode of This Is Us and which co-star helped inspire the name of the beloved drama.
"Who gives themselves credit for inspiring the name of show?" Moore said. "I don't know! Is there an answer for that? There is? I thought that was all [show creator] Dan Fogelman's genius."
After first guessing that it was Sterling K. Brown or Milo Ventimiglia who inspired the name, Moore was stumped.
Chris Sullivan and Justin Hartley then chimed in with the answer. "I think I've heard this story ... I think it's Chrissy Metz," Sullivan said, while Hartley confidently answered, "Chrissy!"
"Really!?" Moore said, completely surprised, "Wow!"
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This Is Us almost had a different title
Before Fogelman landed on This Is Us as the name of NBC's hit drama, it almost had a number in the title. And nope, not "The Big Three."
"It was originally called 36, which is the age they're all turning at the beginning. I didn't like it," Fogelman revealed to Glamour in 2017. "I had done a series of movies where I had never titled them and no one can agree on the title. I threw 36 on it, and then I never liked it. Nobody ever liked it. I came up with This Is Us, I think, when I was in editorial. I decided I liked how it looked at the beginning [of the show], and I put it in there. But, there was a lot of debate over what the title of the show was gonna be."
Fogelman told Deadline that "there was something about This is Us that felt lyrical to me" and said people "kind of" got "attached" to the name as they watched the show.
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Chrissy Metz told Jimmy Fallon how she helped inspire the name of This Is Us
While Fogleman came up with the final title of the show, Metz revealed during on a 2019 appearance on The Tonight Show how she believes she played a role in the process.
"There's a story I heard, I don't know if it's true or false. Can you help me? Did you name the show This Is Us?" Jimmy Fallon asked her.
"Guys, OK! I'd like to say yes," Metz said. "Dan Fogelman — of course, our incredible creator — said, 'Guys, if you can come up with a name, I'll give you an iPad.' And I was like, 'An iPad? I want points on the backend.' I can buy an iPad, Dan Fogelman!"
Metz then shared that a group of people sent Fogelman a list of ideas, and she believes her option led him to the final name. "The one I chose was like 'This, Me, and You' or 'This Is Me and You' or something," she recalled. "I'm just saying, I think I named our show. I'm pretty sure, I'm pretty sure he was inspired!"
