NBC knows a hit when it sees one! After only one episode, NBC granted its new breakout hit, This Is Us, a full-season pickup. Dan Fogelman’s feel-good family dramedy received a “back 5” pickup on top of the 13 episodes that were already ordered, bringing the full first season order to 18. 

Jennifer Salke, President of NBC Entertainment, released the following statement regarding the pickup:

“It’s a rare moment in this business when a show so instantly delivers both critical acclaim and hit ratings, but ‘This Is Us’ is just such an extraordinary achievement. Creator Dan Fogelman, along with co-directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa and the gifted producers, cast and crew, has delivered the kind of heart and depth that resonates with every segment of the audience, and we’re proud to extend its presence on our schedule.”

Proud creator, writer and executive producer, Fogelman, said, “We are thrilled. This order for a complete first season of 18 episodes is exactly what we’d wanted and hoped for. We’d carefully mapped out an 18-chapter story for the first year of the show, and this allows us to follow through with our exact initial intent. And to get the order so early on is a tremendous show of confidence and a boost for our entire cast and crew. I’m starting to sound like a broken record but I have to thank Dana, Gary, Jonnie, Howard and my amazing partners at 20th as well as Bob and Jen and the fine folks at NBC for continuing to do absolutely everything right by me and this show. I’d gush more but I have to go back to work.”

This Is Us‘ breathtaking first episode was loved by both critics and public and watched by more than 10 million people live. It had a demo rating of 2.8, making it NBC’s highest-rated scripted program in the Tuesday 10-11 p.m. time period in more than six years. After Live+5 was factored in, the average rating of the premiere increased to a 4.5, with 14.3 million viewers. It has been the highest-rated new series debut during Fall Premiere Week.

The pickup announcement was made just before yesterday’s (also excellent, and also twisty!) episode just aired. This Is Us kept up with its launch numbers, getting an audience of 8.9 million viewers and a 2.6 demo rating, down just 12 and 9 percent from its very strong premiere.

The perfectly cast show stars Milo Ventimiglia, Mandy Moore, Justin Hartley, Chrissy Metz, (Emmy winner!) Sterling K. Brown, Susan Kelechi Watson, Chris Sullivan and Ron Cephas Jones.

This Is Us switches time-slots to Tuesdays at 9pm ET on NBC, starting October 11th.