Sad news. This Is Us is coming to an end. Ahead of the award-winning NBC drama's season 5 finale} this month, it has been reported that the show will conclude with its upcoming sixth season. The news comes from The Hollywood Reporter, though the outlet reports that NBC is set to make the official announcement on Friday. With season 6 arriving on NBC this fall, the show will officially come to an end in 2022.
Back in 2019, This Is Us was given a three-season renewal at NBC, which guaranteed the show would air at least through season 6. It was also reported by THR at the time that season 6 would likely be the final season for the show. Creator Dan Fogelman also said at the end of season 3 that the series was at its "midpoint," which has turned out to be completely accurate. At the time, Fogelman also revealed that he had an endgame already in mind for the show with no intention of having This Is Us wearing out its welcome.
"We never set out to make a television series that was going to last 18 seasons, so we have a very direct plan. I have script pages I have written and I'm writing that really are deep, deep, deep into the future. We have a plan for what we're going to do, and I know what the plan is," Fogelman told THR.
A family drama series, This Is Us features an ensemble cast that includes Milo Ventimiglia, Mandy Moore, Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz, Justin Hartley, Susan Kelechi Watson, Chris Sullivan, Ron Cephas Jones, Jon Huertas, and Alexandra Breckenridge. After pulling in critical praise, the series has been nominated for a plethora of prestigious awards, including an Emmy win for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series at the Emmy Awards for Brown. Viewership has also stayed high throughout the series, and ending the show seems to be more of a creative decision than anything else.
There are many changes in store at the network as this isn't the only series at NBC set to soon come to an end on the network. After saving the popular sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine from cancelation at Fox, NBC has announced that it will end the show after an abbreviated eighth season. Recently, the comedy series Superstore also ended its run after six seasons. The network's daytime television slate will be getting a big mix-up next year as well, as Ellen DeGeneres just announced that Ellen will also be ending with its upcoming 19th season.
NBC declined to officially comment on the report of This Is Us getting canceled. On Friday, the network is set to reveal its fall schedule for the 2021-22 season, and the official announcement is expected to arrive during this time. The final season will reportedly consist of around 18 episodes, putting the show's overall count over 100 episodes overall. An official premiere date for season 6 on NBC has not yet been announced. This news comes to us from The Hollywood Reporter.