‘This Is Us’ Jack’s Death Clues: Randall’s Girlfriend & Teen Kate, Chrissy Metz’s Weight Difference

A single scene on Tuesday’s episode of This Is Us offers new clues to the often-asked question: What caused the beloved Jack Pearson’s death, and why does Kate blame herself? The This Is Us scene introduces a new character, Randall’s girlfriend prior to his marriage to Beth, along with showing teenage Randall and teen Kate as they mourn their father’s death, reported My San Antonio.

Portrayed by Isabel Oliver Marcus, the girlfriend of teen Randall is named Allison, and she starts what will be a new character subplot on This Is Us on Tuesday night.

“Allison, the girlfriend of the teenage Randall (Niles Fitch), [is] there for him emotionally following the death of his dad (Milo Ventimiglia).”

But it’s not just Randall and Allison who take the spotlight in offering new insights into Jack’s death. Although viewers may not remember, Marcus was unidentified and silent during the season premiere of This Is Us. Her role involved sitting with Randall and his sister Kate and comforting both of the sobbing teenagers after they discover that Jack is dead.

Viewers subsequently found out that Kate blames herself for Jack’s death. But as an adult, Kate shows a tendency to feel guilty for situations involving her This Is Us family, even when she’s not to blame, pointed out Bustle.

Kate tells Toby that she “let” Kevin be sent to rehab, and she even apologizes to Kevin in therapy that she took her “eye off the ball” and therefore is responsible for his addiction. Those insights into Kate’s personality offer a new hint that although she blames herself and even binge-eats in guilt, she may not be responsible for Jack’s death.

Randall Gets His First Girlfriend, Who Comforts Him And Kate After Jack Dies

Without giving away too much, Isabel revealed that she will be in four episodes and possibly more in her role as Randall’s girlfriend. Jack’s adopted son is seen showing his admiration for Allison in a mall as she works in a gift shop.

Hesitant to ask her out, he takes advantage of a Magic 8-Ball conveniently close to help her have confidence to accept after his hesitation makes her nervous. Marcus explained that Allison is hesitant because she and Randall had spent time as pals and she didn’t want to “ruin what they had.”

The scene on This Is Us tonight, however, shows that Randall and Allison have already become so close that she can help to comfort his sister Kate as well in her heartbreak over Jack’s death. Isabel described the emotion.

Jack’s Death Linked To Kate’s Weight Gain

While the triplets might usually turn to their mother, Rebecca, for comfort, Rebecca also is grieving because she lost her husband. This results in a flood of feelings for the three teens, pointed out Marcus.

“There’s a lot of emotion. Rebecca has to deal with her husband’s death. So Allison has to be there for Randall. She must keep it together for his sake.”

Isabel praised the This Is Us cast, sharing how much she enjoyed spending time with all of them, including Jon Huertas (Jack’s buddy Miguel who takes on the role of Rebecca’s second husband) and Milo Ventimiglia.

Teenage Kate (played by Hannah Zeile) is present in the scene with Randall and Allison. Us Weekly pointed out that weight has become a key subplot for the child version of Kate and adult Kate, but less so for teen Kate.

“Rebecca (Mandy Moore) butts head with both younger Kate (Mackenzie Hancsicsak) as well as adult Kate (Chrissy Metz) about their weight, but viewers haven’t yet seen teenage Kate and Rebecca approach that topic.”

With that in mind, Hannah shared that teen Kate does feel self-conscious about her weight. As to why it’s Randall’s girlfriend rather than Kate’s boyfriend who comforts teen Kate after Jack’s death, Zeile revealed that she’s not sure teen Kate will ever have a boyfriend.

“Teenage Kate is kinda angsty, she’s kinda sassy and independent right now,” pointed out Hannah.

This Is Us Fans Speculate About Why Kate Blames Herself For Jack’s Death, With Weight Changes As Clues

On Reddit, some This Is Us fans felt that while the actress playing Kate as a child is “chubby” and teen Kate as shown in the scenes just prior to and after Jack’s death is “curvy,” Chrissy Metz as adult Kate with severe weight problems is the show’s way of showing how much she blames herself for her father’s death.

“As revealed by the fact that adult Kate is obese, it seems as if Jack’s death caused her to go from eating the wrong foods (e.g. Rebecca tries to get kid Kate to share an apple instead of eat cookies) to binge-eating.”

Another This Is Us fan pointed out that the food issues for Chrissy Metz’s character show how much Kate’s childhood affected her as an adult. Jack was shown taking his little girl for secret ice cream, and adult Kate finds comfort in secret fast-food binges.

As to whether it’s possible that Tuesday’s episode, showing teen Randall and teen Kate being comforted by his girlfriend, could actually reveal how Jack died, most fans thought it wasn’t likely.

“It will either be the Super Bowl episode or the season finale…I doubt it will come up in an otherwise random episode,” predicted one fan.