This Is Us still remains beloved amongst fans almost two years after the heartwrenching series' ending. The NBC drama received much praise from fans and critics, despite never winning the biggest Emmy. Between the relatable characters, emotional storylines, and groundbreaking storytelling set between multiple timelines, This Is Us captured hearts around the globe, but that success wasn't a sure thing early on, and star Mandy Moore was evidently pretty superstitious while filming the pilot episode.
Pilot season remains one of the most nerve-wracking times in the television industry, and Moore's 2016 had her recurring in the short-lived CBS drama Red Band Society, but without much luck before that when it came to landing shows getting picked up for series orders. In an interview with AV Club, she admitted to falling into superstitious behavior when it came to This Is Us, as she was afraid it would just be another show that didn’t get to shine. In her words:
I’d had like four or five years of doing pilots that didn’t get picked up to series. Yes, I did Red Band Society, but I wasn’t in the main cast at all. So, I was pretty accustomed to being heartbroken. When I got cast on This Is Us and filming the first episode, Dan Fogelman was excitedly explaining the plot twist to Milo Ventimiglia and I that the show wasn’t linear, we were going to jump timelines and go back and forth. I told him, ‘No, no, no, I don’t want to know more yet because if it doesn’t work out, I’m going to be even more crushed, so spare me the details if you don’t mind.’ I was so superstitious because things hadn’t evolved. It felt like I kept hitting roadblock after roadblock each year.
Luckily, of course, This Is Us was indeed picked up, and fans immediately fell in love with the characters even before the aforementioned plot twist. Mandy Moore and the rest of the cast got to properly tell their beloved characters’ stories and journeys over the course of six seasons and several in-story decades. (Which are all available to stream with a Hulu subscription.)
Moore opened up about how much she loved having the chance to essentially play Rebecca Pearson across her entire adult life, and how she owes it all to creator Dan Fogelman for giving her so many opportunities:
I was told that even though Rebecca isn’t a huge part of the pilot, she is, as you find out at the end of the episode, the matriarch. The way they imagine the series is that it’s very much a story about Rebecca, Jack, and what they’ve built. I was thrilled to be part of it. None of us knew what it was when we got cast. Ultimately, I remember getting to the second episode, and it was so cool to see it play out. We couldn’t have fathomed it. It’s the old adage of all you need is one person to see that potential in you and, give you that opportunity and unlock that door for you to step through. That’s what Dan did for me. He saw something in me and that I was hopefully capable of playing Rebecca as everything from a teenager to a 70-year-old woman and everything in between.
Even though Moore was unsure about This Is Us’ future during its early days, having been heartbroken one too many times, the well-crafted and superbly acted series was just what she needed to bring her luck back around. It’s hard to imagine anyone else bringing Rebecca Pearson to life than Moore, so it’s a good thing that the series went through and that she stuck around. This Is Us had quite an emotional roller coaster, but all of the tissues were worth it.
Mandy Moore’s luck has definitely turned around following This Is Us. While filming the drama, she also reprised her voice role as Rapunzel for Disney Channel’s animated series Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure, which ran for three seasons from 2017 to 2020. She can currently be seen on Peacock’s Dr. Death, which is arguably one of the best true crime shows streaming. And she doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
While a return to This Is Us' universe may just be a dream for fans, at least we can all join Mandy Moore in looking back on her six years. It may have been heartbreaking for the actress to have a pilot fail, but there is a reason that This Is Us succeeded far beyond her imagination. Although who knows what would have happened if Red Band Society or one of her pilots had worked out better before the ensemble drama came around?
