“It was a tough episode to shoot,” Ventimiglia told Parade during this year’s SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) TVfest (tickets are available for purchase here). “It brings up a lot of personal loss in my life, or potential personal loss in my life.” Fortunately, for Ventimiglia, both his parents are still healthy and happy, but filming the death of a parent did give him pause about what the future holds. “I had to think of and imagine the moments where maybe they wouldn’t be with my family,” he continued. “So, it was a very painful journey to take. But also understanding that we all experience that and knowing that Jack was going to go through that and where he was going to go with it.” As for how it will affect Jack’s actions in the future, he says it will change his relationship with his triplets. “Knowing that Jack was a younger man in his early 40s, experiencing the loss of his mom, it just dedicated him more to his kids,” he said. “ I think he wanted to never miss a moment with his kids, with his family, with his wife, and that’s pretty much where it sent him.” Ventimiglia also shared his favorite Jack moment, what it’s like on the set this final season, whether he’s up for a This Is Us movie in the future and what it’s like to reunite with the producers of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel for an upcoming Season 4 role that’s being kept a secret.
Jack’s had quite the journey. He fell in love, he had triplets, one of the babies died, he adopted another one, he dealt with alcoholism. What’s your favorite Jack moment?
I don’t know if I have a favorite moment individually, but probably the journey with his wife has been the most rewarding. Jack’s life was cut short, and I know it was in a moment where he was redefining his marriage with his wife in his 50s, her late 40s. And I think that’s something that’s important to remember for all of us, is there are things that happen in our lives that sidetrack us or stop us and make us look around and think. And I think Jack reconnecting with his wife after so many years and having a hard time, that relationship, that dynamic with Mandy Moore has always been the foundation of the character for me. There is no Jack without Rebecca, and I wonder if there’d be a Rebecca without Jack, even though we know there is a Rebecca without Jack because Jack is gone, which shows her strength as a character and Mandy’s as a performer.
Jack is now ranked among the top TV dads of all time. Do you have an inspiration in playing him, perhaps your own father?
First and foremost, my dad. My dad’s the biggest inspiration. I think because of the era that Jack lived, and when he was born and when his kids were growing up in the ‘80s, that’s very much my life. I was a kid in the ‘80s, so I think I’m always looking at Jack through the lens of being a child looking at my father, and understanding my dad and how he looked out for my sisters and me, and my mom, our family, just everything about being a kid. So, my dad is my biggest inspiration. Beyond that, I’ve got a lot of friends who are fathers, and I kind of check-in with them and understand the way that they are with their kids. If anything, I’m just trying to honor them, not being a father myself, trying to really make sure that I am doing right by all the good dads out there.
What is it like on the set this season? Are there more tears than normal as you do things for the final time?
No, actually it’s a pretty happy set, everything moves pretty easily. No one’s crying yet. Let’s see, it’s February, we’ve got two and change more months to go, three more months to go roughly. I’m sure by the end of it, when we get a little closer to the end, we’re probably going to be a bit more emotional. But for the moment it’s the job as it has been for the last six seasons, just a good place to work.
Dan Fogelman recently teased the idea of a This Is Us film where we might see the alternative Jack story if he didn’t die. Is that something that you would be up for?
Of course. You can’t ever say no to a lot of things, especially professionally with regards to a beloved character and a beloved job. I’m not sure what kind of stories we would be able to tell if Jack were still around because kids grow up and people move on in jobs and whatnot. But, of course, if Dan wanted to do something, I’d find a way to be part of it.
It would be a chance that you don’t get now to work with Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz, and Justin Hartley, because by the time they’re adults, Jack is dead.
Yeah, true. True. That is one thing I’m remiss with the series, Jack’s passing, is that I haven’t been able to work as consistently with the adult big three. But I’ve gotten to direct them, and I’ve gotten to do a lot of press with them, and they’re all lovely, wonderful people.
You were just awarded the SCAD Virtuoso Award. Talk about what that means to you.
I think that what it is for is always going to be a bit of a mystery to me. I think looking at what I’ve done over the course of 26 years in front of the camera is a big inspirational thing for a lot of students, for a lot of younger artists. And, for me, receiving awards makes me a little uncomfortable because I like to just do the work, and hopefully the work and the satisfaction of the work for the audience is the reward. But I think it’s also a good thing to recognize artists that will inspire other artists, so that’s the way that I take the Virtuoso Award from SCAD, is knowing that it will inspire other artists to go on their creative paths. Happy to be a part of that.
You also had some time to guest on The MarvelousMrs. Maisel. Is there anything that you can tease about that at all? The character name on IMDb is simply “Handsome Man.”
No, there’s actually nothing I can tease about it other than some photos where you saw me well dressed with a nice haircut holding a dog and flowers in a park with Midge (Rachel Brosnahan). I think we can all assume where that leads or where that could go, so I’ll just let peoples’ imaginations run wild until I actually pop up on screen.
You worked with Mrs. Maisel creators Amy Sherman Palladino and Dan Palladino on Gilmore Girls. What was the reunion like? They definitely have a unique style of writing.
For me in my early to mid-20s being on Gilmore was probably one of the best educations that I had as an actor. There was such specificity and such poetry to the way that they wrote that you had to really work on it. You had to work on the rhythm, the music of the words. So, to go back to that and already know what it was like in my 20s, it was stepping foot back on a campus that I knew. It was wonderful. It’s funny, people would walk up to me and say, “Hey, so when you’re doing these scripts make sure you know it.” I’m like, “Guys, do you not know where I come from? I was on Gilmore for several seasons, I know this, I understand.” KevinPollak said to me, “If you want to have a conversation about the way scripts are and how the language and the words go,” I was like, “Kevin, I’ve known these folks for years and years and years. I know how to deliver their lines.” Next, Grab the Tissues! We Finally Know When This Is Us’ Series Finale Will Air—Plus, All the Latest Spoilers
