A Million Little Things

Title card.

A Million Little Things, sometimes abbreviated to AMLT, is an ABC drama series created by DJ Nash.

Synopsis

Season 1

Main article: Season 1

They say friendship isn't one big thing, it's a million little things; and that's true for a group of friends from Boston who bonded under unexpected circumstances. Some have achieved success, others are struggling in their careers and relationships, but all of them feel stuck in life. After one of them dies unexpectedly, it's just the wake-up call the others need to finally start living. Along the way they discover that friends may be the one thing to save them from themselves.

Season 2

Main article: Season 2

Friendship isn't a big thing. It’s a million little things. When our gang's dear friend Jon – a man perfect on paper – took his own life, his family and friends were left to pick up the pieces. Each of these friends is not living the version of life they thought they'd be living. And their friend's death forces them to take a look at the choices they've made and to solve the unanswerable mystery of a man they thought they knew.

Delilah, now the sole parent to Sophie and Danny, must help her children move forward from their father's death, while hiding a huge secret of her own. Although she and Eddie are no longer having an affair, she is about to give birth to his baby, a living reminder of their transgressions. To protect their families, they have agreed to say the baby's father is Jon, a situation made even more impossible when Eddie, trying to save his marriage, decides to tell his wife, Katherine, the truth.

As the friends prepare to welcome Delilah's baby into the world, Rome and Regina find themselves at odds. When they got married, they agreed they didn't want kids, but after getting a second chance at life, Rome finds himself wishing he had a baby. And while marriage is about compromise, Regina's not sure this is one she can or should make.

As for Maggie and Gary, after finding out that Maggie is in remission, she and Gary move in together, ready to finally explore what being together is like when neither of them is on chemo. But adjusting to life post-cancer is easier said than done. As Maggie and Gary navigate their new relationship, an unexpected visit from Maggie's mother leaves them questioning everything.

Meanwhile, having watched Jon's last video and learned that Mitch might not be his real father, Barbara Morgan's son, PJ, goes on a quest to find the truth. Having befriended Rome and with an appointment with Maggie on the books, PJ is about to turn his life and our gang's life upside down.

We'll see that family, like friendship, is a million little things.

Season 3

Main article: Season 3

Friendship isn't a big thing. It's a million little things. Our gang ended last season with many challenges in front of them. In season three, we'll see our group of friends once again lean on each other in ways that are both moving and aspirational—something we could all use right now.

When we last saw Rome and Regina, they were about to adopt their son, only to have Eve, the birth mother they had come to know and love, change her mind. With that, Regina finally broke, leaving Rome at a loss as she heartbreakingly admitted: “You made me want this.” Rome and Regina must now face the challenge of moving forward—but how can they move forward from the loss of a child? Especially when that child is still alive, being loved by someone else.

As for Delilah, while she has been having fun with Miles, she begins to question if “having fun” is enough. While Sophie embarks on a journey to pursue her music and Danny discovers his confidence at school, Delilah sees her older children growing into young adults, even after losing their dad. And when Delilah realizes that her time with her own father is limited, she makes a life-changing decision.

When we left Gary, he had just made the difficult choice to pursue his new relationship with Darcy and leave his romance with Maggie in the past. As Gary begins to navigate dating Darcy, he encounters an unexpected challenge when he finds himself becoming an instant father figure to kids of his own. But the process of stepping into these fatherly shoes causes Gary to reflect on the way he himself was raised and make a life-altering decision.

Meanwhile, on the heels of confessing her feelings for Gary, Maggie arrives in Oxford. But her conviction to find out who she is without cancer is renewed when her new roommate Jamie encourages her to create a podcast, chronicling her experiences at Oxford and finding her voice. Maggie's British alter ego allows her to take chances and live outside her comfort zone—while she's literally living outside her comfort zone. But when unforeseen circumstances throw a wrench into her plans, we see Maggie finally bloom into the person she's always wanted to be.

As for the Savilles, we left last season with a big cliff hanger. Is Eddie dead or alive? While the premiere will answer that question, what we'll see this season is that Katherine and Theo will never be the same. They must tap into their strength and redefine their lives, leaning on each other like never before. Through their story, we will follow two mysteries: Who hit Eddie that night? And was this accident really an accident?

And just when the friends seem to find their new normal, their lives are upended when, like ours, COVID-19 rocks their world. We'll see the topics our show depicts—depression, breast cancer, chemical dependency, domestic violence, friendship, family and love—and how all of them are heightened by the challenges our world is facing right now. And we'll rediscover what our gang has always known in their hearts: With the love and support of your friends, you can get through anything.

Season 4

Main article: Season 4

Season three had our A Million Little Things family facing challenges on screen that mirrored our own in real life. Between the forces of a global pandemic and the seismic push for social change, our group of friends navigated new and challenging territory. In season four, we'll see our group come together again in aspirational and uplifting ways as they help each other through life's unpredictable curveballs.

When we last saw Eddie, he was grappling with his life in a wheelchair and fighting for joint custody of his son. Just as he approaches a sense of normalcy and independence, a mysterious phone call from the woman who hit him threatens to turn his world upside down once more. Will Eddie learn to let go and find acceptance for his new life, or will he fall back into old destructive habits?

Finally emerging from the shadow of her marriage, Katherine allows herself to discover who she is outside of a relationship, and more importantly, who she wants to be. Katherine's journey of self-discovery takes her to some surprising new places as she shirks labels and learns to live without the word "should" in her vocabulary.

Forced home from England by circumstances beyond her control, Maggie found her groove as a podcaster, earning a loyal audience and helping Sophie find her own voice. This season, we'll find Maggie committing even further to her mission to help people, which will lead to new personal and professional heights... until a ghost from her past emerges and threatens to send her into a tailspin.

Rome and Regina watched the pandemic crush two dreams: his movie and her restaurant, but it also unexpectedly revived an old one when they became foster parents to Tyrell. But now that Tyrell knows the truth about his mother's deportation, the family harmony will be thrown into discord. We'll watch as Rome and Regina land on their feet but on divergent paths that will test the strength of their marriage.

Trapped in France during quarantine, Delilah finally returned to Boston only to find herself a stranger to her own children. Danny summoned the courage to come out at school, while Sophie sought justice against the man who assaulted her. But with Delilah determined to return to France, her kids are forced to choose between keeping the family together or staying in the only home they've ever known.

And in the final moments of season three, the guilt and anger Gary felt over Sophie's assault led him to the doorstep of the man responsible. As we unpack the events of that fateful night, we'll watch Gary fight to preserve his friendships and, most importantly, the future that he's been longing for with Darcy.

As the season unfolds, we'll watch through laughter and tears as our friend group navigates new identities, new careers and new family formations, all while learning what it means to be family, what it means to love, and what it means to seek forgiveness.

Season 5

Main article: Season 5

Season four saw our A Million Little Things friend group face many challenges. Some humorous, others heartbreaking, but all made easier by the love and support these friends show each other.

After his accident left him wondering if he'd ever be the person he was before, Eddie proved to himself and the people he loves that the answer was no; he'd be even better. By allowing those who count on him to witness his true grit, Eddie has become an even more important role model than he could have possibly imagined. This season, with Delilah and Charlie still in France, Eddie will face the challenge of being a long-distance co-parent, all while pursuing a new career path helping others who've gone through similar challenges.

Season four saw Katherine find the courage to confront her past and come to terms with her sexuality, finally coming out to her family and friends as she developed a romance with her high school crush, Greta. This season, we'll see if Katherine can forge a lasting relationship with Greta while navigating a complicated co-parenting relationship with Eddie on a journey that ultimately reflects on true love and what it really means to be a family.

Last season, we saw Rome make the decision to face his past trauma and begin teaching at the school where he was discriminated against as a teenager. In the process, Rome was able to be there for a student who was also ostracized, helping them reclaim their voice in a way Rome's own teachers did not. This season, we'll see Rome tackle a different kind of challenge, one more personal and heartbreaking, as he deals with his father's health problems. But using humor as a coping mechanism as he always does, Rome has the pleasant discovery that his relationship with his only living parent might just be stronger than he thought.

As for Regina, she finally put the heartbreak of her failed restaurant behind her and started a successful new food truck enterprise. As this new mom to a foster child must suddenly cope with having an empty nest, Regina turns her attention to work, finding that being on a food truck puts her out in front of her community in a way that will change her life forever.

Sophie and Danny came into their own as young adults last season. Danny with his first true romantic relationship, and Sophie processing her sexual assault and beginning to heal. Season five will find them both leaning on their surrogate parents when they need them the most and finding the strength to return that favor in some beautiful and unexpected ways.

Finally, back together and stronger than ever, Gary and Maggie set their sights on having a child last season, but just as they got good news amidst their difficult fertility journey, Gary learned his cancer was back. This season will be a challenging one for Maggie, balancing her pregnancy, a demanding job as a successful radio host, and her worry over what the future holds for her and her growing family. Gary, faced with his own mortality, must make some difficult choices about his future that force him to do the one thing that's always been the hardest for him — need someone.

As the fifth and final season unfolds, we'll watch through laughter and tears as we bring this incredible journey to its conclusion. Along the way, we'll explore the depths of friendship, love and sorrow as we bid this special family of friends goodbye, once again proving that friendship really is a million little things.

Main cast and characters

• David Giuntoli as Eddie Saville
• Floriana Lima as Darcy Cooper (season 3; recurring seasons 2 & 4)
• Romany Malco as Rome Howard
• Allison Miller as Maggie Bloom
• Christina Moses as Regina Howard
• Christina Ochoa as Ashley Morales (season 1; episodes 1-13)
• Grace Park as Katherine Saville
• James Roday as Gary Mendez
• Stephanie Szostak as Delilah Dixon (until season 4 episode 1; recurring season 5)
• Tristan Byon as Theo Saville
• Lizzy Greene as Sophie Dixon
• Chance Hurstfield as Daniel Dixon (season 2 onwards; recurring season 1)

Production

A Million Little Things was created by DJ Nash. On August 9, 2017, he pitched the series to ABC. On August 18, 2017, the show landed on the network with a put pilot commitment, with Nash serving as writer and executive producer. Aaron Kaplan and Dana Honor from Kapital Entertainment were also announced as executive producers.

The show's title comes from the popular adage "Friendship isn’t a big thing – it’s a million little things", and was described as "being in the tone of The Big Chill". Being his first hourlong project, Nash explained that he got the idea for A Million Little Things following his project Losing It, and that the show was loosely based on a personal experience:

It's an optimistic look at how the loss of a friend is the impetus for the other seven to finally start living, to make a promise to him and to themselves to finally be honest about what's really going on... I know in my own life, my friend's passing is a constant reminder to keep things in perspective.

On January 26, 2018, the show received a pilot order by ABC. Casting for the main cast started in February 2018 with David Giuntoli, and ended the next month with Lizzy Greene. Shooting for the pilot took place from March 13 to March 30, 2018, in Vancouver. It was directed by James Griffiths, who also serves as executive producer for the series.

On May 9, 2018, the show was officially picked up to series, and was announced to be co-produced by ABC Studios and Kapital Entertainment. In June 2018, it was revealed that the show would stay in Vancouver for its filming. The series premiered on September 26, 2018.

On February 5, 2019, the series was renewed for a second season. On May 21, 2020, A Million Little Things was renewed for a third season. On May 14, 2021, the series was renewed for a fourth season. On May 13, 2022, it was renewed for a fifth season.

On August 22, 2022, it was reported that A Million Little Things would end with its upcoming Season 5. Per the article, "the decision to bring the show to a creatively satisfying conclusion was made mutually between Nash, the network and ABC Signature/Kapital Entertainment." On October 5, 2022, ABC Entertainment EVP of Programming and Content Strategy Simran Sethi announced that a decision about the show's future would be made "in the next few weeks". On November 7, 2022, ABC confirmed that A Million Little Things would end with its fifth season.

The series finale, "One Big Thing", premiered on May 3, 2023.

Ratings

A Million Little Things Ratings

Total viewers 18-49 Demo numbers These numbers are the total viewers of the first airing on ABC in the USA on Wednesdays 10:00 pm (episode 1.01 to 1.10 and episode 3.09 onward), on Thursdays 9:00 pm (episode 1.11 to 2.09) and on Thursdays 10:00 pm (episode 2.10 to 3.08). A Million Little Things ratings: Total viewers per episode (in millions) Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Season 4 Season 5 Episode 1 5.07 4.99 4.04 2.09 2.21 Episode 2 3.79 4.77 3.85 2.05 2.01 Episode 3 3.66 4.23 3.57 1.75 1.67 Episode 4 3.33 4.05 3.33 1.89 1.69 Episode 5 3.49 4.38 2.90 1.93 1.84 Episode 6 3.31 4.16 3.01 1.76 1.96 Episode 7 3.28 4.45 3.06 2.10 1.87 Episode 8 3.47 4.57 2.62 1.94 1.83 Episode 9 3.17 4.59 2.26 2.22 1.75 Episode 10 3.37 4.17 2.55 1.78 1.91 Episode 11 5.22 3.80 2.01 1.83 1.80 Episode 12 5.41 3.73 2.10 1.91 1.84 Episode 13 5.29 3.65 2.01 1.83 2.03 Episode 14 5.25 3.65 1.97 1.85 - Episode 15 4.98 3.68 2.21 1.96 - Episode 16 5.25 3.64 2.48 1.81 - Episode 17 5.26 3.75 2.48 1.92 - Episode 18 - 4.13 2.48 1.97 - Episode 19 - 4.27 - 1.67 - Episode 20 - - - 1.83 - These numbers are the 18-49 Demo numbers of the first airing on ABC in the USA on Wednesdays 10:00 pm (episode 1.01 to 1.10 and episode 3.09 onward), on Thursdays 9:00 pm (episode 1.11 to 2.09) and on Thursdays 10:00 pm (episode 2.10 to 3.08). A Million Little Things ratings: 18-49 Demo numbers per episode Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Season 4 Season 5 Episode 1 1.1 1.0 0.7 0.3 0.3 Episode 2 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.3 0.2 Episode 3 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.2 0.2 Episode 4 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.2 Episode 5 0.8 0.9 0.4 0.3 0.2 Episode 6 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.2 Episode 7 0.7 0.8 0.5 0.3 0.2 Episode 8 0.8 0.8 0.4 0.3 0.2 Episode 9 0.7 0.8 0.4 0.3 0.2 Episode 10 0.7 0.7 0.4 0.2 0.2 Episode 11 1.1 0.6 0.3 0.2 0.2 Episode 12 1.1 0.7 0.4 0.2 0.2 Episode 13 1.1 0.6 0.3 0.3 0.2 Episode 14 1.0 0.6 0.3 0.3 - Episode 15 1.0 0.6 0.3 0.3 - Episode 16 1.1 0.6 0.3 0.3 - Episode 17 1.1 0.6 0.4 0.3 - Episode 18 - 0.7 0.4 0.3 - Episode 19 - 0.7 - 0.2 - Episode 20 - - - 0.2 -

Only the final ratings are added in these tables. The early ratings are not used.

• The series high is "The Day Before...", which was watched by 5.41 million viewers and earned a 1.1 demo rating.
• The series low are "Out of Hiding" and "In the Room", which were watched by 1.67 million viewers and earned a 0.2 demo rating.

Awards and nominations

• 2019:

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result
NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series	Romany Malco	Nomitated
Television Academy Honors	Honor Outstanding Programs and Storytellers Advancing Social Change Through Television	A Million Little Things	Won

• 2020

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result
Guild of Music Supervisors Awards	Best Song Written and/or Recorded for Television	"All These Things That I've Done" (from "Pilot")	Nomitated
UBCP/ACTRA Awards	Best Supporting Performance, Male	Chance Hurstfield	Nominated

• 2021

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result
Leo Awards	Best Supporting Performance by a Male in a Dramatic Series	Chance Hurstfield	Nominated
Young Entertainer Awards	Best Leading Young Actor - Television Series	Tristan Byon	Won

Trivia

• DJ Nash found the inspiration for the title for the series on a motivational cat photo, while he was surfing the web on the free WiFi at a Ralphs in Sherman Oaks.
• In April 2020, Nash started a podcast titled A Million Little Stories, where he delves into behind the scenes stories and secrets about the television series.

External links

• Official Website
• Official Facebook
• Official Twitter
• Official Instagram
• A Million Little Things on IMDb
• A Million Little Things on TheFutonCritic