News Analysis India

Tag: This is us

  • Ron Cephas Jones, ‘This Is Us’ actor who won 2 Emmys, dies at 66

    By PTI

    LOS ANGELES: Ron Cephas Jones, a veteran stage actor who won two Emmy Awards for his role as a long-lost father who finds redemption on the NBC television drama series “This Is Us,” has died at age 66, a representative said Saturday.

    Jones’ manager, Dan Spilo, said in an emailed statement the actor died “due to a long-standing pulmonary issue.”

    “Throughout the course of his career, his warmth, beauty, generosity, kindness and heart were felt by anyone who had the good fortune of knowing him,” Spilo said.

    Jones had a double lung transplant in 2020 because of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and spent nearly two months in a Los Angeles hospital.

    On “This Is Us,” Jones played William “Shakespeare” Hill, a biological father whose life is renewed through his relationship with the family of his son Randall Pearson, played by Sterling K. Brown.

    “One of the most wonderful people the world has ever seen is no longer with us,” Brown said in an Instagram post after Jones’ death. “The world is a little less bright. Brother, you are loved. And you will be missed.”

    Ron Cephas Jones had a prolific career, but he gave one of the greatest TV performances of the 2010s as William on This Is Us. The episode dedicated to his character’s passing is a masterpiece, and a perfect, fitting microcosm of his gifts as a performer. May he rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/3AIkNCEEHB
    — Brandon Lewis TIFF23 (@blewis1103) August 19, 2023
    Jones played a more central role in the series’ early seasons, but appeared in some form in all six seasons of the show, which included time-jumping narratives offering recurring opportunities for its actors even after their characters’ deaths.

    Jones won Emmys for best guest actor in a drama series in 2018 and 2020 and was nominated for two more.

    “Ron was the best of the best — on screen, on stage, and in real life,” “This Is Us” creator Dan Fogelman said on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “My God: what an actor. I don’t think I ever changed a single take of his in a cut because everything he did was perfect.”

    Jones spent most of his career in the theater before and after “This Is Us,” returning to Broadway even after his transplant forced him to learn to breathe and walk again.

    “My whole life has been the stage,” Jones said in a late 2021 interview with the The New York Times, in which he revealed he had quietly been suffering from respiratory problems since about the time he began on “This Is Us.”

    Ron Cephas Jones was a man of grace, insight, elegance, talent, wisdom, sophistication, and coolness. I witnessed his rise from the Nuyorican Poets Café, to Richard III at NY Shakespeare Fest, to the Emmy award winning performance on This Is Us. He was the epitome of soulfulness. pic.twitter.com/wrJs1VjTFs
    — Wendell Pierce (@WendellPierce) August 20, 2023
    “The idea of not performing again seemed worse to me than death,” Jones said.

    He was nominated for a Tony Award and won a 2022 Drama Desk Award for the Broadway role as a truck-stop cook in playwright Lynn Nottage’s “Clyde’s.”

    A native of Paterson, New Jersey, Jones graduated from nearby Ramapo College, where he had intended to study jazz but switched to theater during his sophomore year. He spent the late 1970s and early 1980s traveling the country, working as a bus driver in Southern California for several years.

    In the mid 1980s he moved to New York, where his career got a jumpstart when he began hanging out and collaborating at the Nuyorican Poets Café, a vital creative hub for poetry, hip-hop and the performing arts.

    A breakout role came in 1994, when he landed the lead in playwright Cheryl West’s drama, “Holiday Heart.”

    Because the full humanity of Black Men deserves to be seen; and Redemption is necessary to that humanity.Thank-you, Ron Cephas Jones pic.twitter.com/JIXLDgQN6F
    — “No Comps” (@NewBlackMan) August 20, 2023
    He would spend the ensuing decades constantly in the theater, often in Off Broadway plays in New York, including a title turn as Shakespeare’s “Richard III” at The Public Theater, and in roles with the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago.

    Jones also had TV guest stints on “Mr. Robot,” “Luke Cage” and “Lisey’s Story.”

    His film appearances included 2006’s “Half Nelson” with Ryan Gosling and 2019’s “Dolemite Is My Name” with Eddie Murphy.

    He is survived by his daughter, Jasmine Cephas Jones.

    Ron Cephas Jones, and his daughter, Jasmine Cephas Jones, made history as the first father and daughter to win an Emmy in the same year. Not only was he given his flowers, but he saw his child receive hers, too. I hope his family can find an ounce of solace in that. Rest well! pic.twitter.com/yGLVjCHffw
    — ☼кёё☾ of House Stark Targaryen (@KeeAliMalcolm) August 20, 2023

    LOS ANGELES: Ron Cephas Jones, a veteran stage actor who won two Emmy Awards for his role as a long-lost father who finds redemption on the NBC television drama series “This Is Us,” has died at age 66, a representative said Saturday.

    Jones’ manager, Dan Spilo, said in an emailed statement the actor died “due to a long-standing pulmonary issue.”

    “Throughout the course of his career, his warmth, beauty, generosity, kindness and heart were felt by anyone who had the good fortune of knowing him,” Spilo said.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2′); });

    Jones had a double lung transplant in 2020 because of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and spent nearly two months in a Los Angeles hospital.

    On “This Is Us,” Jones played William “Shakespeare” Hill, a biological father whose life is renewed through his relationship with the family of his son Randall Pearson, played by Sterling K. Brown.

    “One of the most wonderful people the world has ever seen is no longer with us,” Brown said in an Instagram post after Jones’ death. “The world is a little less bright. Brother, you are loved. And you will be missed.”

    Ron Cephas Jones had a prolific career, but he gave one of the greatest TV performances of the 2010s as William on This Is Us. The episode dedicated to his character’s passing is a masterpiece, and a perfect, fitting microcosm of his gifts as a performer. May he rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/3AIkNCEEHB
    — Brandon Lewis TIFF23 (@blewis1103) August 19, 2023
    Jones played a more central role in the series’ early seasons, but appeared in some form in all six seasons of the show, which included time-jumping narratives offering recurring opportunities for its actors even after their characters’ deaths.

    Jones won Emmys for best guest actor in a drama series in 2018 and 2020 and was nominated for two more.

    “Ron was the best of the best — on screen, on stage, and in real life,” “This Is Us” creator Dan Fogelman said on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “My God: what an actor. I don’t think I ever changed a single take of his in a cut because everything he did was perfect.”

    Jones spent most of his career in the theater before and after “This Is Us,” returning to Broadway even after his transplant forced him to learn to breathe and walk again.

    “My whole life has been the stage,” Jones said in a late 2021 interview with the The New York Times, in which he revealed he had quietly been suffering from respiratory problems since about the time he began on “This Is Us.”

    Ron Cephas Jones was a man of grace, insight, elegance, talent, wisdom, sophistication, and coolness. I witnessed his rise from the Nuyorican Poets Café, to Richard III at NY Shakespeare Fest, to the Emmy award winning performance on This Is Us. He was the epitome of soulfulness. pic.twitter.com/wrJs1VjTFs
    — Wendell Pierce (@WendellPierce) August 20, 2023
    “The idea of not performing again seemed worse to me than death,” Jones said.

    He was nominated for a Tony Award and won a 2022 Drama Desk Award for the Broadway role as a truck-stop cook in playwright Lynn Nottage’s “Clyde’s.”

    A native of Paterson, New Jersey, Jones graduated from nearby Ramapo College, where he had intended to study jazz but switched to theater during his sophomore year. He spent the late 1970s and early 1980s traveling the country, working as a bus driver in Southern California for several years.

    In the mid 1980s he moved to New York, where his career got a jumpstart when he began hanging out and collaborating at the Nuyorican Poets Café, a vital creative hub for poetry, hip-hop and the performing arts.

    A breakout role came in 1994, when he landed the lead in playwright Cheryl West’s drama, “Holiday Heart.”

    Because the full humanity of Black Men deserves to be seen; and Redemption is necessary to that humanity.
    Thank-you, Ron Cephas Jones pic.twitter.com/JIXLDgQN6F
    — “No Comps” (@NewBlackMan) August 20, 2023
    He would spend the ensuing decades constantly in the theater, often in Off Broadway plays in New York, including a title turn as Shakespeare’s “Richard III” at The Public Theater, and in roles with the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago.

    Jones also had TV guest stints on “Mr. Robot,” “Luke Cage” and “Lisey’s Story.”

    His film appearances included 2006’s “Half Nelson” with Ryan Gosling and 2019’s “Dolemite Is My Name” with Eddie Murphy.

    He is survived by his daughter, Jasmine Cephas Jones.

    Ron Cephas Jones, and his daughter, Jasmine Cephas Jones, made history as the first father and daughter to win an Emmy in the same year. Not only was he given his flowers, but he saw his child receive hers, too. I hope his family can find an ounce of solace in that. Rest well! pic.twitter.com/yGLVjCHffw
    — ☼кёё☾ of House Stark Targaryen (@KeeAliMalcolm) August 20, 2023

  • I Want You Back, Amazon Original romantic comedy releases tomorrow

    Express News Service

    Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger first met in 2005 at New York University’s Tish school while pursuing majors in dramatic writing. They wrote their first script together in college.

    Today, seventeen years later, the writing duo has acclaimed titles—across television and feature films—such as  How I Met Your Father, This is Us and Love, Victor  (the spin-off series of Love, Simon), to their credit, and are now awaiting the release of their next feature, the romantic comedy, I Want You Back.

    Having worked together on numerous projects over the years, are they able to read others’ minds by now? Elizabeth laughs and admits that they do. “You spend so much time together that if your thought processes do not align, it’s not going to work, and you will end up disliking your life. It’s really important to our relationship that we stay aligned; we see each other as much as we see our partners. We are always in sync, and we enjoy it.”

    The acquaintance with each others’ writing styles doesn’t take away the element of surprise though. “There are always gonna be moments of surprises and moments that you don’t quite anticipate. We split our work into halves and work on it separately. When we combine them, it somehow feels like the same puzzle,” says Isaac.

    Their next, I Want You Back, is a romantic comedy about a man and woman who bond over the process of pursuing their respective exes—as the title alludes to—after experiencing painful breakups. The film has a host of characters, people who are based on those around the writers.

    “We take inspiration from ourselves… our friends, our mistakes, misfortunes…” Elizabeth shares, with a wide smile. “I think we are always—especially with a movie like this—aiming to make these people relatable. Hopefully, people will go, ‘I know that person!’ or ‘Hey, that’s my idiot friend!’. We want our films to portray the lives of our viewers and the people they know.” 

    At one point in the film, Jenny Slate’s character offers comfort to a perplexed child by sharing that adults are as confused and uncertain as kids. This line—which encapsulates the essence of the film—is inspired by the duo’s own experiences, while scripting the film.

    Elizabeth shares, “We wrote this movie while attending dozens of meetings, driving around the town, and making a ton of mistakes. The combination of trying to act like grown-ups who are in complete control of their lives while, in reality, having no idea about what’s happening around, is a prevailing feeling in the film, and I suspect we were in a similar zone while penning it.”

    Modus operandi varies from writer to writer. Some create characters first and spin the world around them, while others tend to cultivate characters from the milieu of the story. For Isaac and Elizabeth though, thanks to their working style, it’s a combination of both, with characters and their world coming to life simultaneously.

    “We spend a lot of time understanding the ideas and characters of the film. If it’s a comedy, we try to make each other laugh to figure out what makes the film and its characters interesting. We then map out the whole story, and as Elizabeth said, we write in two chunks. Once we get near the 100-page mark, we collate our parts and begin rewriting and polishing until we think it might finally look good.”

    Barring I Want You Back and Love, Simon, Isaac, and Elizabeth have predominantly worked in the long-format medium. “We love both features and series. There are some fundamental differences, of course—the pacing of the story and how long you live with these characters.”

    “There’s a satisfaction in telling a story in say, 90 minutes or two hours, where you have the opportunity to explore scenes and let every scene breathe, as opposed to a TV show, where you have to cram a lot into one episode. On the other hand, you also have to make a series that will have longevity and one that will allow you to spread the story in a completely different way. I think both have their own appeal; it’s just about tapping into different kinds of storytelling.” Isaac quickly adds, “This is why we do both; it’s fun to bounce back and forth.”

    The duo had a fruitful (read ‘hectic’) 2021, completing work on How I Met Your Father and the third season of Love, Victor. In addition to I Want You Back—which Isaac says was written a while ago and was waiting for the cast to fall into place—they have also wrapped up their work on the sixth and final season of This is Us.

    Speaking about their headspace when there are as many characters and storylines to keep track of, Elizabeth tells with a laugh, “Right now, yes, it is all a little crazy. I Want You Back has been with us for a long time, and we are now so close to people finally getting to watch it. It’s exciting that we are nearing the finish line. But yes, it’s all bonkers!”

  • ‘This Is Us’ star Justin Hartley ties the knot with Sofia Pernas

    By PTI
    LOS ANGELES: Actors Justin Hartley and Sofia Pernas have tied the knot.

    According to People magazine, the couple got married “recently”.

    The “This Is Us” actor and his former “The Young and the Restless” co-star made their red carpet debut as a couple at the 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards on Sunday.

    They first sparked marriage rumours earlier this month after they were photographed wearing wedding bands on their hands while spending some quality time at the beach in Malibu.

    Hartley and Pernas, 31, started dating earlier last year and made their relationship social media official on the New Year’s Eve.

    This is Hartley’s third marriage.

    He was previously married to “Selling Sunset” actor Chrishell Stause for two years before he filed for divorce in November 2019.

    Their divorce was finalised in February.

    Prior to Stause, Hartley, 44, was married to his “Passions” co-star Lindsay Korman from 2004 to 2012.

    They have daughter Isabella, 16.

  • ‘This is Us’ to conclude with season six

    By PTI
    LOS ANGELES: Popular family drama series “This Is Us” will end its run on NBC with its sixth season.

    Sources confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the Dan Fogelman-created show will conclude with season six.

    NBC and 20th Television are yet to comment on the outlet’s report.

    However, NBC is said to be planning an official announcement of the final season on Friday, when the network unveils its schedule for the 2021-22 season ahead of Upfronts Week.

    “This is Us”, which premiered on NBC in 2016, follows the lives and families of two parents, and their three children, in different time frames.

    It features an ensemble cast of Milo Ventimiglia, Mandy Moore, Sterling K Brown, Chrissy Metz, Justin Hartley and Susan Kelechi Watson.

    An episode count for the final season has not been set, but it is expected to consist of about 18 instalments.

    Fogelman has previously spoken about the show possibly concluding with season six.

    Calling the show’s third season the “midpoint”, the creator had said, “We never set out to make a television series that was going to last 18 seasons, so we have a very direct plan.”

    “I have script pages I have written and I’m writing that really are deep, deep, deep into the future. We have a plan for what we’re going to do, and I know what the plan is,” he said.

    NBC had renewed “This Is Us” through season six in May 2019.

    However, the fifth season, which currently airs on the network, was cut short by two episodes due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which delayed production multiple times throughout 2020.