Who Is "Her" on 'This Is Us?" Some Theories.
This post contains spoilers for all the This Is Us episodes that have aired, including season three, episode nine, “The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning.”
The fall finale of This Is Us has finally aired and, as promised by executive producer Ken Olin, is an episode that “people will be talking about for a long time.” One of the major questions that will likely come up in your TIU group chat is the identity of the person Future Randall and Tess are visiting, which first came up as a flash forward in the season two finale. Well, the mysterious character received even more airtime with Tuesday’s episode, “The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning.”
To recap: in the final moments of last season, Future Randall picks Future Tess up from work to see someone they referred to as “her.” Viewers quickly took this as a sign that Beth was dying, a theory actress Susan Kelechi Watson has since debunked. In the season three premiere, the moment is extended to reveal a phone call between Future Randall and Future Toby, who answers the call alone in bed. “It’s time to come down,” Future Randall says. “I’m not coming, she doesn’t want to see me,” Future Toby says through his beard, which is gray because it’s the future.
With Tuesday’s episode, we now know more about “her” than ever before-or not, since we’re dealing with This Is Us, the show that majored in plot twists). As Chrissy Metz told Entertainment Weekly in April 2018, the big reveal for the “her” storyline is “not good” and “it’s actually very heartbreaking,” so keep that in mind while going through these theories.
1. Rebecca
If we are to take the show at face value (which, by season three, come on), Rebecca is obviously “her.” As Future Beth casually mentions to her assistant in the final moments of “The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning,” everyone is going to see “Randall’s mother.”
Also worth noting, Future Beth asks if her assistant (at a dance company, of all places) grabbed the Pin the Tail to the Donkey game from her office. “I promised I’d bring it,” Future Beth says. What's that about?
If Rebecca isn’t a red herring, and does indeed turn out to be “her,” the clues where right there in the same episode. Not long after Randall’s debate, Rebecca tells Tess about the pain she’s had since she was in her 20s. Again, this isn’t just a grandma telling her granddaughter some personal information to make her feel better about puberty. Did the pain get so bad that Rebecca is now in a mysterious medical state?
Of course, there are possible explanations supporting why Rebecca isn’t “her.” Future Beth, Future Randall, and Future Tess might all be seeing Rebecca after or before the events of season two's flash forward.
2. Kate
After Beth, Kate has been a strong contender for “her” since day one. It’s almost too easy to tie everyone back to Kate. And thanks to the Thanksgiving episode, viewers now know of the strong relationship between aunt and niece: Tess allowed Kate in when she gets her period and trusted Kate enough to come out to her.
If it is Kate, the timing of Ka-Toby revealing the sex of their baby (a boy!) in present day could not be more perfect. It happens right after the flash forward, but before Jack responds to a boat explosion during the Vietnam War, two key moments of the episode.
For Future Toby to think that Future Kate would not want to see him would mean something significant and unforgivable happened to them. Who wants to start a separate theories thread on what this event could be?
3. Beth
Until “her” appears in an episode, Beth will always be the number one suspect. It’s pretty much a given that in the future, Beth and Randall are no longer together or at least not on speaking terms. (Why else would he ask Tess to call her mother when he’s the one who just used his cellphone to call Toby?)
The future events of “The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning” don’t have a smooth tie-in back to Future Beth, since she says she’s on her way to seeing Randall’s mother, but perhaps all of this is leading to a big confrontation between Randall, Tess, and Beth.
After Beth makes Randall sleep on the couch in 2018, this branch of the Pearsons become divided? To borrow from the episode’s title, Beth and Randall’s post-election fight could have been the beginning of the end. Absolute chills!
4. Annie
Annie, who has not been seen (or mentioned) in these flash forwards on This Is Us, is most likely not “her.” Unless there’s an unexpected Toby-Annie storyline in future season three episodes, it’s hard to explain why Future Toby would refuse to see Future Annie. But it’s This Is Us. Never say never, I suppose.
5. Deja
Just like Annie, Deja is nowhere to be seen in the flash forwards, which also makes her a convincing “her” candidate. Pair that with what she did to Randall’s car in season two and fact that she’s trying to mend her relationship with her biological mother, it’s understandable why there would be tension between Deja and her adoptive family in the future. Could she be in some sort of trouble?
6. Zoe
This is a stretch, but Beth’s cousin could turn out to be “her.” Like Annie and Deja, more would have to be revealed about Zoe’s relationships with the other major characters in coming episodes for this theory to stick. If Zoe does turn out to be “her,” one can’t help but wonder what Future Kevin is up to (besides polishing his three Oscars and four Golden Globes)…
7. Madison
Showrunner Dan Fogelman would never put his real-life wife, actress Caitlin Thompson, in such a heartbreaking storyline, would he?
8. It’s someone new
It would be uncharacteristic of This Is Us to use this format to reveal a new character. Sure, they’ve mastered the art of plot twists and unexpected turns, but introducing a new character just like that would be like watching an entirely different show.
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