‘This Is Us’ Star Jon Huertas, Director Zetna Fuentes, and Writer Jonny Gomez Collaborate to Tell Miguel’s Story

Spoiler alert: The story below lays out the main plot of NBC’s This We Are From Today episode.

NBC fans for six seasons We With tonight’s episode of the TV series Miguel, they experienced a wide range of emotions towards the character of Miguel, especially disgust, which they had to come to terms with. Torn between two worlds, a humble and kind Afro-Latin man doesn’t feel like he fits anywhere quite until he falls in love with a woman named Rebecca (Mandy Moore).

The final product is a behind-the-scenes collaboration with Huertas, staff writer Johnny Gomez, director Zetna Fuentes, many Latino actors, and many other Latinos.

“Working on this episode was great,” Huertas tells Deadline. “The script was absolutely stunning and we have an excellent director who knocked us out of this park. When I first saw it, I jumped out loud. These feelings were piling up inside me, I was holding them back. I remember at one point Sterling K. Brown was on the side of the room and I was trying to contain my emotions, but suddenly this sound came out. which I could not control. As soon as it happened, I think Sterling felt like he had permission and got a very similar vote. We are like two whales interacting with each other. When Mandy Moore joined, I think that was then. newsadmin From [Fogelman] I had to stop to take a break. “It’s good we were able to get Miguel out like we did.”

The episode takes various dates, from Miguel’s showdown as a child in Puerto Rico with his family before moving to Pittsburgh in search of better job opportunities, his love affair with his best friend’s girlfriend, to his recent death. Section.

Gomez, who joined the series as a co-writer in season 3 before joining the cast this year, shares, “There was a lot of pressure to write this episode.” “I always knew there would be a Miguel themed episode and I wanted to write that. I’ve been doing this for three years and it’s even more special than I imagined because it’s a real collaboration between Latinos.

Huertas adds, “And the fact that we’re doing this on everyone’s favorite TV show has made it so special. But Johnny and Zetna were my coworkers. The first day they looked me in the eye and said, “We did it”. So I wasn’t afraid of anything.”

Fuentes laughs when he remembers how one day he collided with Huertas, who excitedly “captured” him while remembering that he persuaded him to shoot the episode “Miguel.” His most recent collaboration marks his second time directing Fuentes. WeThe first was in season 2.

“I remember reading this script and that was it,” he said. “This wonderful story of this man’s journey is truly eye-opening, but it also meant the world to me because he represented the diaspora community. It was very specific and beautifully written, but also touched upon its importance to my family and our families. I remember telling my husband it was a dream. So as a director, I was really getting tips and hints. It really developed like this great story.”

Many layers were important to Huertas, who made Miguel a real person. As an Afro-Latino whose family is of Puerto Rican descent, Huertas and his character shared many life experiences.

“I have a story about my hair and my growth and I need to fix it so I don’t get scared of what I’m doing. I was expressing my identity to fit in and avoid conflict. That’s why we worked at the beginning of the show climbing Miguel Lund’s stairs and trying to assimilate into his life,” she says. “We wanted to bring it back and fully understand it in this episode.”

“The selection of actors representing Latino colors was also crucial to telling this story,” explains Fuentes. As represented by the Latin American overlapping dialogue between Latin American families and Latin American immigrants in the United States.

Regarding Miguel and Rebecca’s love story, Gómez revealed that there is already established history between the two and is working on her script.

“We meet Miguel for the first time in the second episode of the series as Rebecca’s husband and we don’t know what happened all this time. But for us writers, they were married for 10 or 15 years when we met and are now comfortable with marriage. “But what I wanted to see was when they first realized that, and when we started living those moments earlier this season,” Gomez said. “Or if they do, they can’t recognize themselves because they’re not ready.” “

He continues: “First Miguel had to travel. Miguel knew that while most of his life was still unfinished, he still didn’t deserve this much love or a relationship like this. He needed to make an honest effort with his children. He had to make an honest effort with his family. He had to put those pieces back in place to feel whole.”

While Huertas did not share whether Miguel will appear in the final episodes of the series, he did reveal what it was like to say goodbye to the character.

“It was painful to say goodbye to Miguel, but this episode was a great love letter to him,” she says. “Because it’s a collaborative episode, I feel like there are people on my side who helped me say goodbye to the character properly. She looked so perfect that she was less upset. Included WePeople are dying all the time, but we’re still dealing with them. “As an actor, I’m the best time traveler on the show, so you never know when he’ll come back and surprise you.”