‘A Million Little Things’: Jason Ritter Says Eric’s Not Going Anywhere

Unconventional family ties have been generating a million little problems for Maggie (Allison Miller) and live-in boyfriend Gary (James Roday) since Jason Ritter’s Eric (above, with Miller) arrived on the scene on A Million Little Things.

Eric, the transplant recipient of Maggie’s late brother’s heart, has so far established himself as a good guy. “He’s not trying to disrupt anything. It’s just there are circumstances that feel strange,” says the equally likable Ritter, who joined the drama’s sophomore season shortly after wrapping his role as a not-so-heroic father figure to a young superhero on Netflix’s Raising Dion.

And while the actor remarks that “Eric and Gary liked each other at first,” the newcomer’s compassion and genuine interest in the loved ones of the man who saved his life have gotten under Gary’s skin — primarily because those positive qualities are making Maggie more emotionally dependent on this relative (get it?) stranger.

“Eric’s trying to do his best,” continues Ritter, noting how the character’s past loss of his fiancée echoes the Million Little Things gang’s continued grief over the death of their friend Jon (Ron Livingston). “It’s lovely to see how his journey is on this parallel axis with all of these other characters.”

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Another commonality with the core group of pals: Eric has something to hide too. With Gary and Maggie at a crossroads following a heartbreaking situation involving Gary’s dog, Eric factors heavily into next week’s midseason finale — and he does so in a way that may change more than these three lives.

“The story of Eric is not over yet,” teases Ritter. “I’m going to be around for a while.”

(ABC)

A Million Little Things, Thursdays, 9/8c, ABC