This Is Us: Sterling K. Brown and Brian Tyree Henry are best friends IRL

This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown and Emmy-nominated guest star Brian Tyree Henry are best friends in real life, and they’ve finally made it together.

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We know that the This Is Us family couldn’t be closer or more supportive of one another. Whether one of them is celebrating a birthday or ailing from an impromptu black eye, these co-stars always reach out with love and solidarity. But one of Sterling K. Brown’s on-screen connections predates the Pearson story.

Although you might not have known it, Sterling K. Brown, the Emmy-winning actor who plays Randall Pearson on This Is Us, counts Brian Tyree Henry, who you know as William’s cousin Ricky, as a close friend of over 10 years. Suddenly, here’s another timeline we have to wrap our brains around. The pair met performing at the Sundance Theater Lab in various plays and have been thick as thieves ever since. In a recent profile with The New York Times, Brown and Henry discussed coming up in the business together and sharing in the joys of having a breakout, breakthrough year.

Of course, it’s an amazing feeling to find your hard work paying off in a big way — hit shows, Emmy nominations, Emmy wins, etc. — but what’s the fun in riding that wave alone? Sterling K. Brown and Brian Tyree Henry have had each other to lean on as their careers hit the same stride in the past year. And they have even learned a few lessons from each other on the ride, as Henry tells The New York Times:

"“Because at the end of the day, you don’t ever want to go out and do anything mediocre or do anything that is not representative of the person who loves and sees you more than you see yourself sometimes. I’m really thankful we can traverse this whole thing together.”"

Henry, who co-stars in the Emmy-nominated FX dramedy Atlanta and starred in the original stage cast of The Book of Mormon, will next be seen in the film Hotel Artemis, which also stars — who else? — Sterling K. Brown. These two clearly have one of the most enviable friendships in Hollywood (move over, Amy Poehler and Tina Fey!), and they are concurrently taking over the television industry with their talent. And they both always hold space for the other, as Brown tells The New York Times:

"“We all can have a seat at the table. And the fact that me and my man get a chance to sit at the table at the same time, that’s pretty cool.”"

Watch Sterling K. Brown and Brian Tyree Henry talk together on the red carpet of the This Is Us Emmys For Your Consideration event in the video below.

Next: How Randall’s 'emotional gymnastics' will change in season 2

Elsewhere in the profile on the incredible actors, Brown and Henry reflect on what it means for black performers to be finding success in diverse leading roles in hit series and movies and for both them to finally have a seat at the table. Read the full article on Sterling K. Brown and Brian Tyree Henry on The New York Times’ website, and keep the conversation going in the comments an on Twitter at @thisisuscrying!

This Is Us returns for Season 2 on Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 9/8c on NBC.

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ICYMI: Sterling K. Brown and Brian Tyree Henry have the best IRL friendship

By Reed Gaudens | Sep 4, 2017

This Is Us star Sterling K. Brown and Emmy-nominated guest star Brian Tyree Henry are best friends in real life, and they’ve finally made it together.