A 'This Is Us' Star Is Pregnant IRL—and Thought She'd Get Fired If She Told Anyone

A 'This Is Us' star opened up to Us Weekly magazine about being pregnant, and how she thought she'd get fired if she told producers about it.

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Unfortunately, we still live in a world where women are afraid to tell their employers they're pregnant. It's a fear that runs rampant for women in every profession—even show business—and the reasons they want to keep quiet vary. Gal Gadot, for example, hid her pregnancy while filming Wonder Woman because she didn't want the cast and crew to treat her differently. Serena Williams didn't tell her tennis coach she was pregnant before the Australian Open, presumably, to keep the focus on the game. And now, This Is Us star Alexandra Breckenridge is revealing why she was hesitant to tell show-runners about her baby on the way.

“I was like, ‘I’m gonna get fired,’” Breckenridge, who announced she was pregnant in August, told Us Weekly. “I was scared to tell them because I thought it would cause issues for production.”

In fact, Breckenridge was so terrified to break the news to This Is Us' creator, Dan Fogelman, that she peppered her confession with an apology, which is ridiculous when you think about it. Like, why should women apologize for continuing the human race? “I called Dan and said, ‘I’m sorry. I’m pregnant,’” she said. “He was just like, ‘Oh, that’s amazing! Congratulations!’ He’s so nice.”

Fogelman's warm response to Breckenridge's news should be the norm—not the exception. Of course, the United States still has a long way to go in terms of maternity leave for women in general. But regardless of what a company's policy is, no woman should ever fear she'll get fired or receive different treatment for being pregnant.

Breckenridge and her husband, guitarist Casey Hooper, already have one child together: a 15-month-old son named Jack. They're now expecting a baby girl.

This story originally appeared on Glamour.

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