‘This Is Us’ EP Reveals Why He Is Confident Ahead Of Season 2

It’s a struggle for TV shows to avoid the sophomore slump in their second season, but that pressure isn’t nearly as heavy as the weight of starting a brand new program. “This is Us” executive producer Ken Olin told International Business Times that he actually feels pretty confident ahead of Season 2 of the NBC drama.

“I think right now there’s so much more pressure in the first season,” Olin explained at the opening night red carpet for ATX Television Festival in Austin, Texas. “There’s so much competition. There [are] so many great shows. There’s so much energy that everybody puts out to try and get some kind of attention. So if you can break through that and get people interested and excited, you’ve won.”

“This is Us” certainly got viewers invested during their first season. The NBC tearjerker averaged just under 10 million viewers throughout the first season, which wrapped up in March.

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“I also think if, during the first year of a show, you can accomplish what we accomplished, you become so confident about the kind of stories that work that it makes the job so much easier,” he told IBT. “It’s a lot easier to come from a place of confidence than anxiety and fear.”

As for what’s going to happen in “This is Us” Season 2, Olin couldn’t give too many details since the writers’ room is just starting up again. “I have been at our house in New York in the Hamptons for the past three months with my wife,” Olin explained. “The writers just went back in the room a couple of weeks ago. Tomorrow will be the first time I have any chance to catch up with Dan Fogelman, who created the show. I have no idea, except that they’re gonna know how Jack dies.”

The Pearson family patriarch, played by Milo Ventimiglia, was revealed to be dead within the first few episodes of “This is Us.” By the end of the freshman season, viewers knew that he died when the kids were teenagers, and Kate (Chrissy Metz) feels responsible for his death. While fans still don’t know the actual cause, Olin promises that answers are on the way.

“Yes. That’s a definitive yes,” he said. Olin confirmed that it’s the question he is asked most often.

For now, Olin is just excited to reunite with everyone. Friday’s “This is Us” panel at ATX will be a big reunion for Olin and his co-workers, all of whom have become a tightknit bunch.

“I get very excited to be with these people,” the executive producer said. “I haven’t been with them for a few months. It’s a very close group. I mean, as much as that comes through, it’s really a genuine part of the experience. Everybody’s really close, so I miss them. I haven’t seen them for a while, so I’m looking forward to seeing them tomorrow.”

“This is Us” will return to NBC in the fall. Though NBC initially planned to move the drama to Thursdays, the show will actually remain in its Tuesday timeslot at 9 p.m. EDT.