‘This Is Us’: Milo Ventimiglia Predicts How Jack Pearson Would Respond to the Coronavirus Pandemic
As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to impact our world, many writers and actors are sharing how fictional characters would respond. Now This Is Us star Milo Ventimiglia has shared how Jack Pearson — aka one of the best TV dads of all time — would handle the current crisis. And basically, the actor’s answer confirmed what viewers already know.
‘This Is Us’ star Milo Ventimiglia shares how Jack would handle the coronavirus
On May 7, the Can’t Stop Watching podcast from the LA Times released an interview with Ventimiglia. Then when asked how Jack would deal with the coronavirus, Ventimiglia knew exactly what the This Is Us character would do.
“He’d be having a ball with his kids,” the actor said. “And deep down, whatever fears he has going on out in the world, he would never let them see it.”
Then Ventimiglia explained one of his close friends is currently living out how Jack would respond to the pandemic.
“He is one of my models of Jack,” Ventimiglia said. “I FaceTime him a couple of times a week and he’s with his kids. He’s in the pool and they’re swimming and they’re doing games and they’re having fun. He built a studio in their house so they could record an interview show and interview their friends over Zoom.”
The This Is Us star continued: “But then I know that when the kids are busy doing whatever they’re doing by themselves, he’s in the garage with a mask, with gloves, sterilizing the food that’s come in. But not for them to see. So I imagine Jack is much the same.”
And although Jack would make it fun for his kids, Ventimiglia reassured fans the character would still understand the gravity of the situation. He said:
Jack is the guy that’s gonna be there, almost making an adventure out of it with his family. But at the same time, understanding this is a very real, very serious, very scary time for a lot of people. Jack’s gotta look out for his, and hopefully, do what he can for everybody else. But Jack’s got to look out for himself because if you don’t look out for yourself, then you won’t be around to look out for others.
How Milo Ventimiglia is doing now
Still speaking on the Can’t Stop Watching podcast, Ventimiglia shared how he is personally dealing with the pandemic. The actor explained he is quarantined in New Mexico. Ventimiglia went down for his Evel Knievel project — a role he dyed his hair blonde for. Then when production shut down, he remained in the state.
Nevertheless, Ventimiglia is staying busy. And alongside at-home workouts and brushing up on his Japanese, it seems Ventimiglia is doing what he can to stay healthy — both mentally and physically.
“I’m taking my vitamins, social distancing, keeping active, talking to friends, talking to family, looking out for myself, and eating well,” he said. “So I think in doing that, the only thing I gotta contend with is this dry skin out here in New Mexico. But that’s about it.”
Milo Ventimiglia reveals how the ‘This Is Us’ cast stays in touch
Meanwhile, Ventimiglia revealed he still gets in touch with the This Is Us cast from time to time. But he also acknowledged everyone is living their own life.
“I haven’t seen any cast Zooms. It’s kind of like a band on tour. When you’re on tour, you’re there tying each other’s shoes,” Ventimiglia said. “But when you’re not on tour, you’re kind of off on your own. And maybe you keep this tether to one another.”
He continued: “I’ve definitely traded messages with Mandy [Moore] … I’ve FaceTime’d with Justin [Hartley], and I’ve traded messages with Sterling [K. Brown]. A bunch of us are collectively trying to find ways to reach out to the community of the This Is Us audience. You try and do what you can … And you try to shine a light on things that need the attention.”
Even so, Ventimiglia hinted there’s plenty going on in group chat among the This Is Us team. But he wasn’t able to share any details. “Then, of course, there’s the completely goofy sh*t that we can’t even really talk about that usually, [executive producer] Ken Olin starts, but we all contribute to,” he said.
Now when the This Is Us crew is able to reunite to create the fifth season, it’s likely things will have to change. During the Can’t Stop Watching podcast, Ventimiglia speculated what will happen moving forward. He suggested productions sets could become a sterile environment, where people are scrubbing in and out. But ultimately, everyone is still trying to figure it out.
“I think these conversations are really starting to kick into high gear in Hollywood,” Ventimiglia said. “We all want to get back to work so that we can one, do our craft. And two, put shows out. The show must go on, we gotta find a way.”
He added: “What a heavy load the writers must have right now trying to consider, ‘Well geez, do we put in the script that Jack and Rebecca share a kiss? Is that putting Milo and Mandy in danger? Can they hold hands? Do we have to shoot them six feet apart and make it look like they’re only a foot or two away? How does that work?’”
Clearly, there’s plenty up in the air right now. But hopefully, This Is Us fans are willing to accept whatever changes are needed to keep everyone safe.
Read more: ‘This Is Us’: Will Rebecca Leave for the Clinical Trial? Fans Predict What Happens in Season 5
