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‘This Is Us’ Season 5: Is Randall's birth mom Laurel the Black therapist? Here's why the theory is not true

Will Laurel be back as the main character in the next few episodes? Sadly, Jennifer C Holmes hasn't made any such announcement yet

‘This Is Us’ sure likes to play with Randall Pearson's (Sterling K Brown) emotions more than anyone else. In the two-hour premiere episode, his biological father William's backstory played out along with his birth mom Laurel. The premiere night titled ‘Forty: Part One and Two’ starts and Randall wonders when and how was he really born. Is it even the same day as the Big Three's celebrations?

As the moment dissolves into a flashback from the past, a baby is lying next to William (Jermel Nakia)... and he turns his lover Laurel (Jennifer C Holmes) around to notice that she seems dead. Ending with a major cliffhanger, the last scene closes with Laurel taking a breath. After that scene, fans can't stop wondering: Did William ever find out Laurel was alive? Is Randall's biological mother still alive? Will Randall ever know what his real mother was like? 

Now, a new theory seems to be floating around on social media. Many fans believe Laurel will make an entry to the show as Randall's Black therapist. Remember how he rang up Dr Leigh to explain how he cannot tell her many things he feels and wishes to find a new therapist? Who could be the Black therapist? Is it Laurel? Here's what fans believe.

"Debriefing with my sister and she has a WILD theory that Randall is gonna find a black therapist and its gonna be Laurel. #ThisIsUs," one viewer posted. Another speculated, "So Laurel would be too old to be his new therapist, right? And that would be just too much to take. He's in Philly now but William & Laurel were from Pbgh but the therapist or her daughter or whoever end up in Philly treating him? Please, writers, no. #ThisIsUs," one said.

A third chimed in, "What if Laurel ends up being Randall's NEW therapist?! #thisisus." A fourth one added, "Because like many in the helping field, she's suffered trauma and is called to help others. Throughout the season it becomes so clear... It's Laurel."

Fans are stressed out and can't stop asking when will they find out the reality about his birth mom. "Low key...high key stressed for Randall and his whole birth mom situation! Because William isn’t there to explain his side of what happened in the flashback & why he did what he did! I can only imagine how hurt & confused Laurel was as well! #ThisIsUs," one posted and another noted, "Y’all know damn well we won’t find out about Laurel until the mid-season finale or the finale."

Will Laurel be back as the main character in the next few episodes? Sadly, Jennifer C Holmes hasn't made any such announcement on her social media pages. Her Instagram bio reads, “For with God nothing will be impossible Luke 1:37.” It may be possible that Laurel went with one of those emergency medical technicians who was feeling too sorry for her. And William never really met her again. But, it's also true that she may be dead and it was just for a split second that she caught her breath. Well, all we can do is wait and watch.

Explaining the new twist, showrunner Dan Fogelman told TV Guide, "There's definitely answers as to, 'Is she still alive in the present day?' And definitely answers as to kind of what happened after this from before. Honestly, who was this woman well before this moment, well before she met William. Where is she from? This woman who was Randall's birth mother and hasn't played a prominent part in our story thus far — who is she, where is she from, what is her story? That's a big part of Randall's journey this season." 

According to Fogelman, the plan was always to have Laurel be a bigger part of Randall's story and the writers wanted to bring her back at a crucial moment. "For us, Randall's story, big picture, has always been a story of identity. He's a man that's constantly, like many people who come from different backgrounds, is kind of searching for who he is and where he's from. It's always been a part of his story, the story of his birth mother that we've never really shown out and told. I think for Randall, for that character, until he can get some answers there, and some kind of closure, it will be a final kind of step in him coming to terms with some of his own questions about his identity," Fogelman said.

Soon, This Is Us writers quashed that theory and posted, “She is not going to end up as Randall’s therapist.  #ThisIsUs.” After that tweet, while some fans said they didn't want any spoilers, others poked fun at it saying it sounded the same as Madison will never be with Kevin pronouncement.

The two-hour episode of 'This Is Us' premieres on Tuesday, October 27, at 9 pm ET on NBC. Following that, you can catch one-hour episodes starting at 9 pm from November 3, 2020.