‘This Is Us’ Producers End Debate Over Kate’s Pregnancy Test

This Is Us fans were left speculating after the show’s final episode before its two-month hiatus in November. A scene indicated that Kate, the character played by Chrissy Metz, was pregnant as a teenager and had since kept it a secret. During a flashback scene in which Kate recounted the story for her husband, Toby, who is played by Chris Sullivan, a teenage Kate took a pregnancy test. After close examination, viewers theorized that Kate was first holding a box for an ovulation test, then later holding a positive pregnancy test.

The character taking an ovulation test would then imply that she was figuring out the best time to get pregnant with her then, toxic boyfriend, Marc, who is played by Austin Abrams. Fans debated whether or not that was feasible, since the shot of the positive pregnancy test seemed to be right after the shot of the ovulation test box, and the character was wearing the same clothes in both shots. Many added that the ovulation box shot may just be a mistake on the show’s part.

While This Is Us is famous for having fans one up with different theories about its creative storylines, this was a rare instance in which the producers stepped in to put some rumors and theories to rest. Executive producer Isaac Aptaker revealed the true storyline to Entertainment Weekly.

“As soon as we saw that people were misinterpreting, of course it drove us crazy,” he said. “So let the record officially show: That was [meant to be] a pregnancy test box.”

While part of the debate has been solved, viewers will not have to wait much longer for further answers about the storyline, producers added that the show will pick right back up on Kate’s storyline when the show returns.

“This isn’t going to be a lingering mystery… We pick up immediately into that conversation with Kate and Toby right when we come back from the break, and then we’re going to explain the story of what happened,” he said.

This Is Us returns to NBC Tuesday, January 5.