I spend way too much time thinking about how Milo Ventimiglia's Jack could have possibly died on This Is Us. (I mean, seriously — the question is filling in the gaps that "Who is A on Pretty Little Liars?" took up for seven seasons.)
I thought I had it figured out thanks to a thorough theory about Jack's death by washing machine fire, but now new speculation is making me reevaluate just about everything: What if Jack didn't die in a fire at all, but instead, died in a car accident while attempting to rush over to his burning home?
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
The new evidence comes from — where else? — Reddit, with user Weezerluva369 suggesting that Kate (Chrissy Metz) had a particularly unusual reaction to the minor fender bender that she got in following her OA meeting in season 2, episode 5 "Brothers."
"Kate's reaction at the fender bender was EXTREMELY emotional, and [in my opinion], seemed to have some kind of traumatic association. The way she totally phased out like that, it comes across like mild PTSD. Rather than frantically touching her belly and freaking out a little, she went catatonic and looked truly terrified," writes the Redditor.
"I've always thought that Jack died in a car accident trying to get home to the fire. What if Kate was in the car with him, or (more likely considering that she wasn't hurt) called him to tell him to come home?"
Weezerluva369 also notes that it's odd that Jack's personal belongings weren't burned in the fire, as we saw when Rebecca (Mandy Moore) drove past her charred home in the first episode of season 2, "A Father's Advice."
It's also a little weird that the team behind This Is Us haven't confirmed that, yes, Jack died in the fire that claimed the Pearson family home. This Is Us adores a good twist, and Ventimiglia himself told Entertainment Weekly we should expect the unexpected when it comes to that fire.
"I would say nothing is as it seems on this show. But we’re not ones to lead people astray, so showing the burned-down house and a wailing Rebecca is definitely an indication of what happened possibly that night. Or what it has to do with Jack’s death," Ventimiglia teased to EW. "We’re not into misleading people, but if we gave everybody everything right now, what would the [mystery] be about?"
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Of course, the greatest mystery is how long can fans stand not knowing the truth.