It's the end of the road for the Pearson clan. After six seasons, This Is Us is coming to a close, and there's still a lot to unravel about the future of the ever-growing family. While the sixth season has already revealed certain key details for This Is Us theories about what happens to the Pearson family a decade or so into the future (like, say, that Uncle Nicky finally finds love and gets married), there are plenty of turns that will keep us guessing.
For a family drama, This Is Us hasn't shied away from packing in serious twists, beginning with the pilot episode's shocking dual timeline trick. That's why there's almost guaranteed to be more coming — and given that This Is Us is wrapping up, these moments may be the biggest surprises of the whole series.
Of course, we won't know what they are until they happen — but that hasn't stopped us from speculating what these jaw-dropping moments could be. Here are five theories that, should they come true, will leave our jaws on the floor.
Randall Becomes President
Randall probably isn't the President in the final flash forward, unless his Secret Service has the day off while he and his family are enjoying some time at the family cabin. However, the magazine article calling Randall a "rising star" in the flash forward at Kate's wedding hints that he has a big future ahead of him in politics. Season 6 of This Is Us shows how Randall wants to change the world, and always has wanted to — and what bigger way to make an impact on the world than by becoming the POTUS? Certainly stranger things have happened in the world of politics — and it might be the very last thing we see happen to Randall at the end of the show, if the show hops forward another 20 years or so. (Technically, we already have seen into this future, with Jack Damon as a famous musician.)
Kate Dies
Where is Kate in the final flash forward?! Some people suspect that she died at some point in between her wedding and the cabin scene, and sadly, there's a decent amount of evidence to back this up. An episode which chronicles her son Jack's interest in music shows Kate and Jack working on music in the garage, until, over time, Kate disappears from the scene. Kate has battled some health issues in the past, but thus far, there's no big clue as to how she may die — assuming she does, that is.
Oh, And Maybe Miguel Dies
Sadly, this is a real possibility for the flash forward. Miguel isn't by Rebecca's side on her death bed, and it might be because he's just no longer around. Miguel and Rebecca aren't young people in the flash forward, so as sad as it is, it's possible that Miguel died before Rebecca did. That may be why the family is gathered in the cabin, and not, say, Rebecca's house — perhaps Kevin took Rebecca to the cabin after Miguel passed away. What would be very sad is if Miguel's death hastened Rebecca's own disease...and This Is Us is known for being quite the tearjerker.
Kevin Marries...Well, Really Anyone
Honestly, whoever Kevin marries in the future (assuming he does) will be pretty surprising — if only because there are plenty of viable options. Madison seems to be the forerunner here, as she's the mother of his twins and Kevin is looking pretty jealous these days of her potential boyfriend, Elliott. Still, that doesn't mean it's guaranteed to be Madison — he could always get together with Cassidy, or, perhaps, reunite with Zoe now that he has children of his own. While I feel like the Sophie/Kevin story has been played out (seriously, how many times can two people who dated in high school break up?) there's always the chance that Kevin's first love becomes his last. Any option — including that Kevin's future wife is a total rando — would be surprising in its own right!
This Is Us Is All in Jack's Head
Okay...hear me out. Jack died in a fire, right? And changed the course of his children's lives forever? And that's the whole premise of the show? What if everything we've seen after Jack's death was nothing more than an It's a Wonderful Life dream Jack had while unconscious in the hospital? The final episode of This Is Us could have Jack wake up instead of dying of a heart attack — and realize that, no matter what happens to him, his kids will ultimately be okay. It would be a St. Elsewhere ending, but it would certainly be the kind of twist this show loves.
Images: NBC