NBC’s new comedy-drama This Is Us has been hailed as groundbreaking in its storytelling and has been something of a hit for the network when it comes to ratings. Whilst NBC is yet to confirm whether or not they’re renewing This Is Us for a second season, increasing evidence points towards the cast returning for more episodes of the hit show.

It’s no surprise that networks base their programming decisions off ratings. If a show performs well in the ratings, it has a greater chance of being renewed than a struggling show. With that in mind, according to Cinema Blend, when This Is Us returned from its winter break last week, the show hit a ratings milestone. The returning episode set a new ratings record for This Is Us, with a 3.0 in the key 18-49 demographic, with a further Same Day +7 audience of around 1.5 million viewers.

"This Is Us" Is The Weepy Melodrama America Needs Right Now https://t.co/isakrWGzGM pic.twitter.com/diLOMDbkRv — BuzzFeed (@BuzzFeed) January 10, 2017

NBC was quick to praise the show’s successes, too, with the latest episode seeing a 7 percent jump from the show’s previous 18-49 demographic rating record at 2.8 in December. Crucially, though, the most recent episode put This Is Us at the top of the 18-49 demographic ratings for entertainment across each of the four big networks on Tuesday night. That also makes This Is Us the most-watched original scripted series in over seven years to air on the Tuesday night time slot, with only Law & Order: SVU providing any sort of competition back in 2009.

The 18-49 demographic rating is crucial to networks when it comes to deciding whether or not a show will be renewed, whilst also being the demographic that advertisers pay most attention to. With the highest ratings in the 18-49 demographic for the timeslot since Parenthood got a 3.1 rating back in March 2010, it’s safe to assume that NBC is pretty pleased with the performance of their latest comedy-drama, putting in a good place for renewal.

According to Deadline, Fox, who currently produces This Is Us for NBC, are similarly pleased with the show’s performance. With Fox chairman Gary Newman saying the show’s creator “Dan [Fogelman] has crafted a personal show that is very emotional. We made a commitment at our studio to writers to give them every chance to succeed.”

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As it stands, the evidence points towards This Is Us being easily renewed for a second season by NBC, however, the decision over whether that second season goes ahead, will ultimately be down to the show’s creator Dan Fogelman. Fogelman is also responsible for producing a number of other television shows and upcoming movies.

This Is Us premiered on NBC on September 20, 2016. The show’s cast is comprised of Milo Ventimiglia, Mandy Moore, Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz, Justin Hartley, Susan Kelechi Watson, Chris Sullivan, and Ron Cephas Jones. The premise of This Is Us is about the family lives and connections of several people who all share the same birthday, with the show putting particular emphasis on how both similarly and differently each of the main characters live their lives.

Just seven days after that first season aired, NBC picked up the series for a full 18-episode run. Since then, the show has continued to grow in strength, increasing its ratings week after week. Whilst NBC is yet to officially renew the show for a second season, strong ratings suggest that the network would be keen to do so, providing creator Dan Fogelman is also onboard.

[Featured Image by NBC]