Meet the 9-year-old stars of This Is Us

Fans of “This Is Us” are, by now, familiar with series leads Chrissy Metz (Kate), Sterling K. Brown (Randall) and Justin Hartley (Kevin).

Equally important to the show’s ongoing plotline have been ’80s-era parents Rebecca (Mandy Moore) and Jack (Milo Ventimiglia), and the younger versions of Kate, Randall and Kevin — played by nine-year-old actors Mackenzie Hancsicsak, Lonnie Chavis and Parker Bates.

We asked Mackenzie, Lonnie and Parker to answer a few questions about “This Is Us” and about their roles on the NBC series.

Your scenes are with Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia. Do you ever get a chance to interact with Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz and Justin Hartley?

Lonnie: Well, yes I do get to interact with them when we are on set, in passing. We talk about the show and we talk about life basically, in general.

Mackenzie: We did a scene in the cabin for “The Trip” [episode] with Sterling. We were playing Monopoly as a family and had to pretend he wasn’t there. It was very hard because he was yelling right in front of my face but I had to act like he wasn’t there. The Director kept saying, “Mackenzie, stop smiling.” I met Chrissy in the beginning when I was first cast and have seen her a few times. She is very nice and very pretty.

I met Justin one time, too. He took a picture with Parker and me. And I met Chris Sullivan [Toby] once when we were filming the “Last Christmas” episode at the hospital. I was wearing my hospital gown and he was having lunch. He told me that I was doing a great job on the show and asked me if I was having fun. I think he is really nice and funny and I’m glad he didn’t die on the show like he did on [the Netflix series] “Stranger Things.”

Parker: We actually got to do a scene with Sterling K. Brown, which everyone saw in episode 9, “The Trip.” We had to pretend he wasn’t there, so in between takes we chatted about how things were going in our different eras! Chrissy likes to visit us while we are filming to get a sense of what Kate was like as a child. We joke around and she always tells us how well we are doing. She is like a super cool aunt! Justin and I share the character “Kevin.” When we get to hang out, we talk music, Legos, and movies.

Do your TV “parents” Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia ever give you any parental advice?

Lonnie: Well not directly, but yes they do give me some advice about how to adapt when I didn’t know how to, and how to be grateful for what you have. We usually just talk about what I don’t already know and some tips I need for acting.

Mackenzie: Neither of them have kids but they act like they do. They are very good with us and very nice. One time when we were doing “The Pool” episode Milo asked me to practice our lines. He was very proud that I knew my lines. And the part where he puts the sunglasses on my head like a crown, he made that up! Mandy and Milo both like to take a lot of pictures of us kids and them, just like my mom and dad in real life like to take pictures of me. And also on the Pool episode, after 3 days of filming at the pool Milo said, hey, we haven’t gone in the pool at all so we all decided to jump in. That has been my best memory so far!

Parker: Milo had a very parental moment when he brought us each (“the little big 3”) a special top during our Thanksgiving episode. He told us how he has a bunch of them and likes to try and get them all spinning on his kitchen cabinet without letting them fall off. He also likes to teach us magic tricks in between scenes. Mandy loves to make funny faces, play games and do snapchats with us.

Mandy (Moore) and Milo (Ventimiglia) both like to take a lot of pictures of us kids and them, just like my mom and dad in real life like to take pictures of me.

Is it weird to wear those clothes from the 1980s? Or is it kind of cool?

Lonnie: It’s kind of weird and kind of cool at the same time. Randall doesn’t really dress like my type of dressing and like Kevin’s type of dressing. It’s kind a cool and kind of not.

Mackenzie: At first it was weird but now I’m getting used to them. I don’t like the “mom jeans” as Mandy calls them because I never wear jeans in real life and they’re not comfortable. Most of the clothes are cool. I loved the outfit I wore when I dressed like Cyndi Lauper and Parker dressed up and sang “Everybody Wang Chung Tonight.” Mandy took pictures of us in our cool costumes. I love . . . the ladies in wardrobe. It’s always fun coming to set and seeing what outfit they’ve picked out for me. And they pick out my shoes and socks and matching scrunchies! There’s an upcoming episode where I get to wear lots of necklaces and bracelets and I really liked how they did my hair.

Parker: The ’80s were full of short shorts, vests, jam pants and crazy patterns! I love it, because I kind of feel like Zack Morris from “Saved by the Bell.” He is awesome, so I’m totally OK with it!

What’s been your favorite scene to act in so far? The hardest?

Lonnie: I have two favorite scenes. One of them is with Miss Mandy after the Thanksgiving scene when I said I’m going to celebrate Thanksgiving again. The other is with Mr. Milo when I said I didn’t want to be different. The hardest scene was the pool scene because there were so many background kids screaming and yelling and playing.

Mackenzie: My favorite scene and the hardest scene were the same one, the scene with Milo at the Pool. I loved the Care Bears suit the ladies made for me and filming at the pool for those 3 days was the best time. Milo’s mom and dad were on the set that day and they watched us film that scene. I liked how he made up the part with the sunglasses on my head. It was a hard scene to do because there were so many extras on the set. I had to block out everybody and just focus on my “dad.” To act sad I thought how it would really feel if my friends in real life told me I embarrassed them and drew a mean picture of me and said they didn’t want to be my friend anymore.

Parker: My favorite scene . . . I can’t talk about yet! Just watch Episode 13 and you will see. My second favorite was also the hardest, which was the drowning scene from Episode 4. We had an awesome underwater camera and a scuba diver controlling the shots. To get it right, we had to do it over and over, which was a little tough because treading water makes you tired and the water was super cold.

Do the three of you hang out with each other when you’re not on the set?

Lonnie: I don’t really get to spend a lot of time with [Mackenzie and Parker] offset because I’ve been busy working on lots of other projects, but we do get to hang out. We are all nine, but we’re not in the same grade.

Mackenzie: We do like to hang out with each other. We all met at our call back. We didn’t know it at the time that we would all get cast, but we got to do an improv scene together and it was a lot of fun. My mom took a photo of Parker and me at the audition and she thought we kind of looked like we could be brother and sister. I go to public school and am in the 4th grade. Parker and Lonnie are both home-schooled. Parker is the oldest, he will turn 10 in March, I turn 10 in August, (I want my party at Chuck e Cheese) and Lonnie just recently turned 9. When we filmed the pool episode down in Long Beach, Parker, Lonnie and I went to this really cool ice cream place called “Afters” and got a donut filled with ice cream and then rolled in Captain Crunch! And one time Parker and his brother Prestyn and I met at the Sherman Oaks Archlight and saw the movie “Trolls” and then had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. I love hanging out with my “brothers.” I miss them when I’m not on set.

Parker: We are all 9 now, but I’m the oldest. We love to hang out on and off set. We go to the movies, out for ice cream, out to eat and to fun parties just like regular friends. We spend a lot of time together and I think we will always be friends because we share this amazing experience together.

“This Is Us” airs at 9 p.m. Tuesday on NBC

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