‘This Is Us’ Stars Both Lose Their Homes to Fires Like Their Characters: ‘Art Imitating Life’

In an almost unbelievable case of “life imitating art,” as Milo Ventimiglia told CBS News on January 9, 2025, the actor’s home burned down in wildfires that have devastated parts of Los Angeles since January 7. The irony isn’t lost on Ventimiglia, who skyrocketed to fame on NBC’s “This Is Us,” playing a dad who saves his family from their burning house.

Making Ventimiglia’s loss even eerier, Mandy Moore — who played his wife on the hit show — has also lost her home in the wildfires. Both stars have expressed deep gratitude over their families being safe, but also vulnerably shared their grief on January 9 as they returned to their charred neighborhoods for the first time since evacuating.

Milo Ventimiglia Gets Choked Up Thinking About Memories at Lost Home

In 2018, one of the most dramatic and consequential episodes of “This Is Us” aired during its second season, when a fire ripped through the home owned by beloved TV couple Jack and Rebecca Pearson, played by Ventimiglia, 47, and Moore, 40. Though Jack was able to rescue his family and their dog before the house burned down, he would later die of smoke inhalation.

On January 9, CBS News followed an emotional Ventimiglia as he returned to the site in Malibu where the home he owned with his nine-months-pregnant wife, Jarrah, had burned to the ground.

“You start thinking about all the memories in different parts of the house and what not,” he told reporter Tony Dokoupil, choking back tears, “and then you see your neighbors’ houses and everything kind of around, and your heart just breaks.”

After evacuating on January 7 with a few important things, Ventimiglia said he and his wife watched their house burn via their security cameras, recalling that there was “kind of a shock moment, where you’re going, ‘Oh, this is real and this is happening,’ and then we just turned it off. What good is it to continue watching? You know, we kind of accepted the loss.”

When asked about the odd coincidence of having played a character who lost his home to fire, Ventimiglia said, “You know, it’s not lost on me. Life imitating art.”

Unlike Jack, though, Ventimiglia knows his family will move forward together, telling Dokoupil, “We’ve got good friends, and we’ve got good people we’re working with, and we’ll make do. We’ll make do. Wife and baby and dog are most important.”

Mandy Moore Vows to Help Rebuild Their Community

Meanwhile, Moore and her husband, Taylor Goldsmith, lead singer of the folk rock band Dawes, were able to evacuate with their three kids — three-year-old Gus, two-year-old Ozzie and three-month-old Louise — before fire swept through Altadena, located just north of Pasadena.

On January 9, Moore posted photos on Instagram as she and Goldsmith returned to examine the charred remains of their neighborhood.

“We were able to park and walk up our street to bear witness to all the loss,” she captioned the photos of Goldsmith wading through the wreckage. “Miraculously, the main part of our house is still standing. For now. It’s not livable but mostly intact.”

“We lost Taylor and griffin’s studio with every instrument and piece of equipment they’ve ever owned,” she continued. “We lost our garage and back house. Everyone we know lost everything. Every house on our street is gone. My in laws. My brother and sister in law- 6 weeks from welcoming their first baby. Our best friends.”

“Feeling weird survivors guilt,” Moore added. “We love this community and will do everything we can to help rebuild and support. Thanks for everyone for checking on us and offering us help. Altadena strong.”

Moore later shared a GoFundMe campaign for Goldsmith’s brother and his wife, writing that they “lost their home and everything they own” within weeks of their first baby arriving.

“Griff is a touring musician and also lost his entire arsenal of drums/percussion he uses to make a living,” Moore shared, telling critics that “of course” they were helping them too, but that “we just lost most of our life in a fire too.” Within hours, $129,000 of their $145,000 goal had been raised.

The post ‘This Is Us’ Stars Both Lose Their Homes to Fires Like Their Characters: ‘Art Imitating Life’ appeared first on EntertainmentNow.

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