Finding Your Roots: Season 7
Season 7 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Finding Your Roots Season 6.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 7 Progress Shield
To the Manor Born
Jan 19, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Glenn Close and John Waters. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. discovers the privileged lineages of Glenn Close and John Waters.
The Mole Agent
Jan 26, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Andy Cohen and Nina Totenberg. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. introduces Andy Cohen and Nina Totenberg to their survivor ancestors.
No Irish Need Apply
Feb 2, 2021 · 60 min
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. explores the roots of actor Jane Lynch and comedian Jim Gaffigan, revealing the Irish American experience through their families.
The Shirts on Their Backs
Feb 9, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Tony Shalhoub and Christopher Meloni. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. reveals the immigrant roots of actors Tony Shalhoub and Christopher Meloni, introducing ancestors who came to
Write My Name in the Book of Life
Feb 16, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Pharrell Williams and Kasi Lemmons. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. helps musician Pharrell Williams and filmmaker Kasi Lemmons uncover extraordinarily rare first-person accounts o
Country Roots
Feb 23, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Clint Black and Rosanne Cash. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. uncovers the remarkably diverse backgrounds of country music icons Clint Black and Rosanne Cash.
The New World
Apr 13, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: John Lithgow and Maria Hinojosa. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. traces ancestors of actor John Lithgow and journalist Maria Hinojosa who thrived in North America long before the b
Anchored to the Past
Apr 20, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Gretchen Carlson and Don Lemon. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. examines how journalists Gretchen Carlson and Don Lemon were able to overcome biases in their careers, drawing paral
On Broadway
Apr 27, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Audra MacDonald and Mandy Patinkin. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. investigates the family histories of Broadway stars Audra MacDonald and Mandy Patinkin, discovering ancestors wh
Laughing on the Inside
May 4, 2021 · 60 min
Guests: Lewis Black and Roy Wood, Jr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. provides comedians Lewis Black and Roy Wood, Jr. with accounts of hardship in their family trees which may have led th