This Is the Gut-Wrenching Reason Jon Killed Himself in ‘A Million Little Things’
Published May 18 2022, 9:50 a.m. ET
If you're watching A Million Little Things and are expecting a light and fun show that definitely isn't trying to concoct a bunch of emotional scenarios to get you bawling your eyes out, then boy are you tuning into the wrong show.
Fans of the series are delighted to know that ABC's already greenlit a second season, so they'll be able to see how the characters will navigate all of the emotional turmoil of the Season 1 finale. But one question everyone's mind is: Why did Jon kill himself?
Why did Jon kill himself in 'A Million Little Things'?
All of the show's episodes were leading up to this exact moment: discovering just why Jon took his own life in Season 1's first episode and left his group of friends wondering what happened.
If you're looking for a super quick answer to unpack on your own: Jon did it because he suffered from survivor's guilt.
The term is defined as: "a condition of persistent mental and emotional stress experienced by someone who has survived an incident in which others died."
However, the show is called A Million Little Things for a reason, and there was a series of events that culminated in Jon making that final decision.
So what was the cause of Jon's survivor's guilt? Delilah discovers it when she decides to track down a woman named Emma in a photo. However, it turns out that the woman is actually Barbara Morgan.
Barbara used to date Jon's former best friend and roommate, Dave. They enjoyed hanging out with one another so much that Jon successfully persuaded his pal to come with him to a real estate conference he was attending. While at the airport, Dave boards the plane safe and sound while Jon ends up missing his flight because he went to go and pick up a bottle of wine.
Jon calls Dave to let him know he's going to be on the next plane. Everything seems fine and dandy until the camera reveals the date in a newspaper: Sept. 11, 2001. Jon was supposed to board American Airlines Flight 11 with Dave but ended up being accidentally saved by his lateness.
To make matters even more complicated, Barbara was pregnant with Dave's kid, which Jon learns months later on his departed friend's birthday. She tells Jon that she ended up meeting an emergency services worker who responded to the attack to help others and that he will help to raise her child as if it was his own kid.
Jon freaks out at this idea, saying it's disrespectful to his late friend, and the two part ways, never to see each other again. Jon ends up at an airport bar somewhere and meets Delilah. The two hit it off, and then they get married.
In Jon's final video he records before he decides to end his life, he says that he tried his best to live his life for D but the tremendous guilt was too much for him to bear and he couldn't take it any longer.
Even though the reason Jon took his own life was divulged in the Season 1 finale, there are still a lot of unresolved matters his surviving friends need to work through in Season 2. Are you interested in seeing more?