'This Is Us' star Sterling K. Brown on Randall's political future after finale (original) (raw)

The series finale of This Is Us ended on Tuesday night with young Randall exchanging a look of contentment with his father, Jack, as they basked in the glow of a lovely, if quotidian, moment of family happiness on a lazy Saturday in the early '90s. Also, in the present day (which is now the 2030s), Randall, proud father of three adult daughters, excitedly learned from one of his children that he would be having a grandson. Other than that, we can't think of anything particularly newsworthy about the Pearsons' future that stands —

Oh, right! Randall Pearson just might become President of the United States. Titled "Us," the final episode of NBC's time-jumping family drama first dropped a reference to deep-fried Oreos when Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) asked Randall (Sterling K. Brown) if he made a decision on that high-calorie, high-stress matter. (He was still musing, as was she.) Later in the episode, things came into focus when he told his siblings that the DNC wanted him to go to the Iowa State Fair to shake some hands and eat some junk food, "and if the folks who like to deep fry their food like you, then maybe…" Kevin then asked him if he was planning to go, and Randall said, "I'm weighing it with Beth, but if she's down… for Mom, yeah, I might go." And later in that conversation, when the brothers were razzing each other, Kevin joked, "Some people don't like their presidents all weepy and stuff, you gotta button that up."

Of course, the show had dropped clues about the POTUSibility earlier this season. Remember that teen Randall (Niles Fitch) asked the cop at the pool not to arrest him (and his trespassing siblings) because he was going to run for president one day and he couldn't have this on his record. Reflect back on Randall's road trip with Rebecca (Mandy Moore), during which he told her that if he ran for a Senate seat, he'd win. (He did.) And recall that when Randall said that if he won, he "couldn't imagine where this thing would end," and she told him with a smile that she could "see it very clearly."

So clearly, there you have it: A definite… um, strong possibility. Sure, Randall has committed his life to being in service of others, and yes, this idea truly would honor Rebecca's pursue-those-big-dreams wishes for him, and no doubt, the guy's pretty good with a speech. But the idea that a show that busied itself in the minutia of feelings and family politics was hinting one of its characters might become the leader of the free world is a big swing. What were the surely animated discussions like in the TIU writers' room about Randall landing in the top office in the land? "We had debated so many different things," Fogelman says. "Randall's endpoint was often very debated. What we pretty clearly knew was whatever decision we made internally, we weren't going to take the story all the way there. I would be lying if I didn't say there were moments when we discussed the idea of going back in time to Randall getting Tess (Iantha Richardson) to go to his mother's deathbed and revisiting that scene and showing him surrounded by Secret Service agents going, 'Eagle is on the move!,' and everybody going bats---. We thought it would distract from the television show, and it wasn't the right decision for us, but it was certainly a source of a lot of conversation."

Brown remembers having a conversation with Fogelman about Randall's professional end game back in season 2. In a 2017 Hollywood Reporter story, Sorkin described what a West Wing reboot might look like, and it was with Sterling K. Brown in the role of president. (Fun fact: Sorkin would tap Brown in 2020 to fill in as Leo — a role played by the late John Spencer' as part of the reunion on HBO Max: A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote.) Tweeted Brown: "#AaronSorkin, if you are serious, I would be honored."

The tweet "got a little bit of traction," Brown recalls. "Folgelman actually watches everything that we do on social media, so he's like, 'What a cool idea. What if I had Randall become president and then the spin-off is like the next version of The West Wing?' I was like, 'You're a crazy so-and-so.' But in his mind, he was off to the races. He's like, 'And so it begins.'"

Fogelman remembers it this way: "I said: 'It would be the ultimate great twist in television history if This Is Us was the prequel to the spinoff of The West Wing on the same television network.' I actually thought it was kind of genius."

Ron Batzdorff/NBC

Make no mistake, Brown was intrigued by the idea of Randall — a baby once left at a fire station — rising to such political heights. And it made thematic sense to him, given his character's focus on public service as he rose from Councilman to Senator. "I feel like there are the public servants who authentically want to make the world a better place and not because they want to be the person in power, but because they just want to see an equitable distribution of rights of resources for all of their fellow countrymen," the actor says. "They are fewer and farther between than we would care to admit. If Randall were to step into that world, he'd be one of those individuals who just wants to see the world be a better place. So I'm excited about it for him. And I have to be clear too, because people will ask me sometimes: Would you ever be interested in politics? The answer is unequivocally no. Not at all. No thank you. I enjoy my lane very much and I enjoy spending a bit more time with my children than a lot of folks [in politics] are able to because that's a busy, busy, busy, busy life. But for Randall, for a term — well, two terms, you gotta do two terms if you're gonna do it — I would be happy for him if that was a role that he was able to step into."

The size of that "if" is up for inspection. Fogelman doesn't necessarily consider it a done deal that Randall will run. "All he's committed to in this final episode is that he'll go explore this fair and see people like him," says the creator. "I think the question's better left unanswered for now — only because what I wanted to capture was that like Kate and like Kevin, Randall is able to follow his mother's wishes and not allow himself to be hampered or held down by his mother's passing, but for her or in honor of her, potentially move forward in the biggest way imaginable."

In a show that offered much closure at the end, Fogelman views the end point of Randall's political career as something the writers only wanted to "touch upon lightly." He quips that the looming question proves to be "the closest we come to the Sopranos family scene in that diner when everything just going to black." The answer, he says, lies in... brace for it, you know it's coming.... your own imagination. "You can bring your own knowledge of the character and what is said [earlier this season] and you can decide as the audience like a _Choose Your Own Adventure_-type novel: Does he ultimately bail and just say, 'I want to be home with my wife and my kids, and I'm very content in my position as a Senator,' which would also be lovely completion of his arc? Or do you think he goes all the way? This is definitely a cutoff in that point of time, and one of the few things we leave hanging. And if Aaron Sorkin wants to reboot The West Wing with Randall, then I give it to him."

Sterling K. Brown as Randall Pearson. Ron Batzdorff/NBC

Fair enough, Dan, but in your mind, do you have a definitive answer of what happens? "I do have a definitive answer in my mind." And here's what he's willing to say about it: "Randall has always been an extraordinary character with an extraordinary gift, and the wish fulfillment of potentially saying that part of the story you've been watching here was also the origin story of potentially one of the most important people in the world is actually a lovely way to think of the human experience. This little boy who we've seen gone through trials and tribulations and certainly be imperfect — the idea that that's even on the table, it feels like a rewarding thing to me. What did not feel rewarding was taking him all the way there during the show, because that's not what the show was about."

The man at the center of the story has a few thoughts on what might happen next. "In my mind, he runs," Brown says, pointing to Randall's line about "doing it" for his mother. "After that Thanksgiving speech that she delivers, to her children telling them to take the big swing — to be bold, to live life — as a legacy and in memorium to her to respect her wishes, yeah, I think he does it."

And if Randall does run, does he live up to his pledge and win the biggest election imaginable? That's where Brown remains hopeful, but is a bit more prudent. "I don't know. I mean, everybody thinks they're going to win, right?" Brown says with a laugh. "It's hard for me to isolate what I know about the country and politics and what I know about the world of the show. I have to isolate one from the other because the country itself tends to oscillate. We go back forth, we have four years of this, now let's have eight years of that. So depending on how folks are at the time, how satisfied they are with the current executive branch means quite a bit. But I do think he is a charismatic individual who connects with people in an authentic way. And that being said, his chances are pretty good." A pause. "In my mind, I think it happens."

Susan Kelechi Watson and Sterling K. Brown on 'This is Us'. NBC

Of course, we need to bring into the equation a key person: Beth. Randall did say that she'd have to sign off on such an endeavor. Watson isn't 100 percent sure that her onscreen husband would enter the race, but…"if he does run and we ever did anything about it, I would need Dan to set up a conversation with First Lady Michelle Obama, so that I could speak to her about how this feels," she says. Though, all this talk about 1600 Penn is hard for Watson to process: "I honestly cannot even — I mean, we just wrapped this show. You're going to have me thinking about presidential stuff? It would be so huge if he did, but I don't know. I always try to root for the biggest, boldest dream. So maybe he does run. I'm still gonna run my dance studio, though. He better not stop my dream!"

"Well played," Brown says with a chuckle when he's informed of Watson's stipulation for Beth. "She doesn't have to give up the dance studio. It's a short commute between D.C. and Philadelphia."

Realistically speaking, what are the chances of seeing this (or any) extension of the Pearson universe? While Fogelman isn't ruling out a project in the future, he says, "I don't think a spin-off is happening anytime soon."

"It does feel like the book is closed to me," opines Watson. "There really is something beautiful about the fact that this show has always known its timing and it's always known the trajectory of the story and literally from day 1, Dan has always known it. I feel like we've told it to the best of our ability. I'm happy to step away from that as is. I'm sentimental that way. I like things as is."

Brown leaves the door open just a skosh more. "If there was something that evolved the story in a way that was fulfilling to the audience, I think it would probably be a film," he says. "You know how Downton [_Abbey_] will drop a movie every once in a while just to keep up with folks? If Dan had a story to tell that he thought that this vehicle was uniquely equipped to handle, then yes. If somebody else said, 'You know what? I'm thinking about taking that This Is Us thing and doing…' — you ain't Dan Fogelman. I'm good."

But if Aaron Sorkin comes calling....

Say goodbye to the Pearsons with EW's special This Is Us edition, available to purchase online or wherever magazines are sold.

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