How Did Jack Die in ‘This Is Us?’

Once the smoke becomes palpable, Jack is startled awake and rushes to get Rebecca, Randall and Kate (Hannah Zeile) out of the house. (Kevin isn’t home.) Jack heroically gets his wife and children to safety, but, as they look at their burning house, Kate screams that their new dog, Louie, is still inside. Jack hears the dog barking and, against Rebecca’s wishes, decides to rush back into the fire. 

Not only does he successfully retrieve Louie, but he also manages to collect family albums, Kate’s audition tape for Juilliard and everyone’s respect before the Pearson house completely burns down. But we’re not in the clear yet.

The fire department comes and Jack and Rebecca go to the hospital so Jack can have his wounds dressed and undergo a checkup to make sure he’s all right. The doctor says that although Jack inhaled a good amount of smoke, he appears to be in good shape. Jack apologizes to Rebecca for not picking up batteries for the smoke alarm and she goes off to make hotel reservations for the family since their house is clearly no longer inhabitable.

And then it happens: While Rebecca is at Miguel’s (Jon Huertas) house checking on the kids, Jack goes into cardiac arrest from the previously mentioned smoke inhalation and dies. Yes, just when we thought maybe Jack’s impending death was some big ruse by the This Is Us producers and maybe he wouldn’t pass away after all, it really happens.

At that point, Rebecca is just as shocked (but probably more so) than us, and refuses to accept that her husband is dead. She continues eating the candy bar she just purchased and it isn’t until she sees her husband’s lifeless body that the magnitude of the situation really sets in. With nothing left to do, Rebecca goes to Miguel’s home once more and breaks the news to him. He’s gutted, understandably, but she tells him they have to be strong for the kids. Then, she does the hardest thing she’ll ever have to do and tells her children, Randall and Kate, that their father is dead. (Kevin is still at a party in the woods with Sophie, so Kate tells him later.)

What most viewers, including this editor, found so frustrating about Jack’s death is that it was preventable. Had Jack unplugged the Crock-Pot instead of flipping the switch to off, it probably would have never happened. Hell, if he and Rebecca had replaced the Crock-Pot once they could afford a properly working one, then they’d still have their storybook romance and dream home. Also, if Jack hadn’t gone into a burning house to save the family dog and family mementos, he probably wouldn’t have inhaled so much smoke and would have lived to see another day. But, of course, these things did happen and our favorite TV dad is no more. 

Even though we’ve known Jack would die basically from the beginning of the series, the news isn’t any easier to take. All we can say is rest in peace, Jack Pearson, you gem, you.