After six seasons, 103 episodes and all of the feelings, “Parenthood” is coming to an end. In anticipation of the series finale on Thursday night, HuffPost Entertainment spoke to the man who knows how to make you cry: showrunner Jason Katims.
“Parenthood” spent so much time on the bubble. What is it like to finally have the chance to give this show the farewell it deserves?
“It sometimes felt more like group therapy than a writer’s room.”
–
I definitely don’t say, “Oh, let’s make somebody cry!” I think what happens on both the shows, on “Friday Night Lights” and “Parenthood,” is there’s sort of a sensibility that developed over time and I really think it’s such a combination of factors. Yes, you can read one of the scripts and feel emotional. Absolutely. But the combination of these performances, from the incredible casts that we’re getting, along with the stories we’re telling, along with the way the scenes are edited and the music. I think it’s a combination of so many things that go into it. One of the biggest compliments I get is that people say they feel like they know these people, like they have been dropped down into a room with these people, not like they’re being served up characters on TV. I feel that both shows had that intimate feeling. And that feeling that these were people that you knew is what allowed the audience to feel emotional watching it. They felt like they were more inside of the show, rather that watching it from an outsider’s point of view.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
