Warning: major spoilers ahead for the tear-jerking series finale of A Million Little Things, called "One Big Thing."
The five-season journey of A Million Little Things with the very high highs and very low lows of a group of friends has come to an end after fewer episodes than usual for a season. "One Big Thing" delivered some developments fans certainly predicted, along with some surprises to make sure that the final credits rolled with some sweet to go with the bitterness of tragedy. As expected, Gary died in the finale after a battle with cancer, but it wasn't him succumbing to the terminal Stage IV lung cancer, and star James Roday Rodriguez and show creator DJ Nash opened up about what didn't happen in the series finale.
Gary in fact chose the time and method of his death by securing a promise from Rome and Eddie that they would procure the drugs needed to allow their friend to die on his own terms. They wrestled with the request, but were ultimately willing to grant the last thing he'd ever ask of them... before Maggie stepped up. She pushed past the pain of losing her husband when they hadn't gotten as much time as they deserved together, and the pain of her infant son losing his father, to sit with him and give him the drugs herself.
The entire circle of friends and family were on hand to celebrate Gary and mourn him throughout the episode, but there was something missing that fans who have watched live and/or via a Hulu subscription over the last five years have gotten used to: Gary talking. While James Roday Rodriguez did speak in "One Big Thing" (and I for one was a mess when it came to the video that he recorded for Javi for his 16th birthday), the cancer had cost him the ability to talk in the scenes set in the present prior to the flashforward.
It raised the emotional stakes that he was unable to speak in his final moments, but according to James Roday Rodriguez, it was a "refreshing" choice for the finale. The actor (who also co-wrote the episode) told Deadline:
It was great. I’ve done a lot of talking on the show. Probably, if you counted up the words, Gary’s way out there ahead of the group. So it was pretty refreshing to just not hear my own voice for eight days. I think that part of it was Stage IV lung cancer, here are the things that could happen. We had a consultant and went down the list. I thought, that’s horrible, but also for someone who relies so heavily on his words, that’s a pretty good indicator that you might not want to stick around for too much longer. So I think it served two purposes: what’s real but also what can you take away from Gary so that he feels like, you know what, I’m ready. And taking away his voice was a pretty big deal.
James Roday Rodriguez spoke about the anxiety of the final season's cancer storyline long before the finale aired, and his comments about Gary being unable to speak and choosing his time to indicate that a lot of thought and care went into his ending. With a consultant to make sure that his final days were accurate, the loss of his voice was both realistic for somebody with Stage IV lung cancer and impactful for fans who have been hearing him speak and speak and speak for five seasons.
A Million Little Things creator DJ Nash also addressed Gary not speaking in the present of the finale. Ever since he spoke out in the wake of ABC confirming the end of the show, Nash has been open about always planning to conclude the series after five seasons. He addressed the finale's ending for Gary as something that had been planned for quite some time, saying:
In terms of Gary not speaking, we had known this ending for a long time, we knew that standards and practices would be appropriately monitoring how we told the story. So there were certain conditions that we all agreed would be appropriate, like no children being present when it happened. To not show how to, not show the cocktail, what that was. And to have Gary be in pain was something that the consultants suggested that I wanted and Terrence wanted to add. So I think we wanted to be telling a controversial topic, but in a socially responsible way. And even the decision to have Regina object, it was actually a James note that someone in the friend group should be uncomfortable with this so that we could present all sides.
DJ Nash cited showrunner/executive producer Terrence Coli as a collaborator on the decision to have Gary in pain at the end. Interestingly, James Roday Rodriguez was evidently responsible for Regina taking issue with being kept in the dark on the plan that was basically assisted suicide for their friend.
All in all, it wasn't an easy episode to watch, even though regular viewers knew going into the finale that Gary almost certainly wasn't going to receive a miracle cure and get a happily-ever-after with Maggie and Javi. Fortunately, A Million Little Things didn't just end on Gary's death, but a flashforward that showed Javi learning how to drive, Maggie moving on with her life while still loving him, and all the ways that their friends grew, thrived, and lived in the sixteen years since his passing.
And if you're ready to brave that flashforward all over again, you can do so below! Take it from me, though – you may want to grab some tissues first. Take a look:
On the whole, it's a relief that A Million Little Things got its fifth and final season with the time to tie off loose ends and give these characters the closure that they deserved. DJ Nash previously said that the end of the series would leave the door open to potentially revisit the characters in the future; for now, fans can just be content with rewatching the series on Hulu and/or checking out new options on our 2023 TV premiere schedule.
