Mandy Moore revealed that she is prepared to cry as This Is Us comes to a close with its sixth and final season. The actress is returning to play Pearson family matriarch Rebecca for the last episodes before the acclaimed NBC drama closes its book. Moore has spent the better part of five years translating the show's highly emotional storylines, which have left a major impression on viewers. Since This is Us premiered in 2016, it's been known for being a poignant and affecting series.
This is Us season 6 shouldn't be any different, as it promises to be a tear-jerking conclusion. The series has told the story of the Pearson clan from childhood through to adulthood by balancing precariously on the emotional edge of television through the use of This is Us' flashbacks, flash-forwards, and present-day scenes. Rebecca's watershed moments throughout five seasons have included the death of her husband, family patriarch Jack (Milo Ventimiglia), the birth of a grandchild with a disability, the physical and mental abuse of Rebecca's only daughter Kate (Chrissy Metz) via a teenage boyfriend, the addictions suffered by son Kevin (Justin Hartley) and the crippling anxiety suffered by overachieving son Randall (Sterling K. Brown).
In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, Moore spoke about what she expects as the new season begins and progresses, and how she will deal with these emotions moving forward:
“I’m getting ready for what Dan has told me is going to be a really challenging year. I’m going to have to save all my tears, calibrate all my adrenals, get myself into a stable place before all of that gets wrecked and ruined!”
Moore's portrayal of This Is Us' Rebecca has been highly emotional, particularly throughout the series' past two seasons since the character was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. In flash-forward scenes, Rebecca will suffer at its hands and will close This is Us as an older, bedridden woman in a cabin built from her late husband Jack's design by her son Kevin. Moore is grateful for the opportunity to bring this challenging and very real story to life, however, it appears she is unprepared to deal with the emotional effects this storyline will bring to her on a personal level.
The show will come to its resolution by the time the This Is Us series finale airs in the spring of 2022. Whether fans are pleased with the outcome of the many unanswered This is Us questions that surround the lives of the Pearson clan remains to be seen. Moore's poignant portrayal of Rebecca will only deepen as she faces exhaustion from having tragically lost a spouse, hiding family secrets, and struggling through difficult relationships with her children. The best, for this tragic character, is still yet to come.
Source: The Los Angeles Times