'This Is Us' Writer Jas Waters Dead at 39

Jas Waters — a.k.a. Jas Fly — a prominent media figure and writer of NBC's This Is Us, was confirmed dead on Wednesday (June 10). She was 39 years old.

News of her passing was announced by the show's official writers' Twitter account yesterday. The Los Angeles County Coroner today confirmed the cause of Waters's death was hanging, with her death ruled a suicide. 

"The entire This Is Us family was devastated to learn of Jas Waters passing. In our time together, Jas left her mark on us and ALL over the show. She was a brilliant storyteller and a force of nature," a spokesperson for the show tweeted.

Aside from her work on This Is Us, Waters had writing credits on series such as Kidding, Hood Adjacent with James Davis, Gossip Game and The Breaks. Additional credits include What Men Want, MTV's Real World and NBC's ER. In 2012, she also had her own column at VIBE magazine. 

This Is Us creator Dan Fogelman wrote his own tribute to the late Waters, saying, "This news took my breath away. Jas was absolutely brilliant and had so many stories still to tell. She made an indelible mark on our show and my heart breaks for her loved ones. RIP."

Read tributes to Waters from her many friends and colleagues below.
 

 

 

 

 

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I admired her. She was as beautiful as she was powerful, gifted with a pen, and funny too. I wanted so badly to be her best friend 😂 but I admired and envied how she created boundaries, and learned from her. Jas, your life and the things you shared about your upbringing needs to be a movie. I so hope you left a script behind, because you need to be learned, studied, and remembered. You were a star. Not in the way humans will ever understand, but a REAL star. You stood firmly in one place and drew those who needed your light close to you. Thank you. Thank you for challenging me, and teaching me, and letting me be one of the lucky people who got to experience your light. Rest In Power Jas Waters aka Jas Fly. The community is feeling this loss deeply and your space will never be replaced 💔

A post shared by Amber Riley (@msamberpriley) on Jun 10, 2020 at 5:41pm PDT

 

 

 

 

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I had some of the best conversations of my life with Jas Waters. She was an exquisite writer and thinker. A powerful, vulnerable, generous, fearless soul. My thoughts and sympathies are with her family and loved ones, whose loss is surely incalculable. The world has lost someone tremendously special. Deep love to you, Jas.

A post shared by John Mayer 💎 (@johnmayer) on Jun 10, 2020 at 7:56pm PDT