Finding Your Roots

Season 9

2023 · 10 episodes · 1h 46m in all · 8.0/10

Episodes

1. 

   1. Hidden Kin

   3 Jan 2023 · 53 min · 8.0/10

   Henry Louis Gates explores the remarkable roots of actors Edward Norton and Julia Roberts—using DNA analysis and genealogical detective work to travel generations into the past, tracing lineages that run from Northern Europe to the American South. Along the way, Norton and Roberts reimagine their family stories and discover their hidden connections to our nation’s history—and each other.

2. 

   2. Salem's Lot

   10 Jan 2023 · 53 min

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. takes actors Claire Danes and Jeff Daniels on a journey into their roots, uncovering primal scenes from our nation’s past, featuring World War One battles, Civil War prison camps, and America’s most infamous witch hunt.

3. 

   3. Secret Lives

   17 Jan 2023

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. helps comedians Carol Burnett and Niecy Nash decode scandals hidden within their roots, exposing secrets that their ancestors concealed and celebrating the virtue of accepting one’s relatives—whoever they may be.

4. 

   4. Far From Home

   24 Jan 2023

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. maps the family trees of pop icon Cyndi Lauper and actors Jamie Chung and Danny Trejo, exploring records in Italy, Korea, and Mexico to uncover ancestors whose stories were lost when their families immigrated to America.

5. 

   5. Rising From the Ashes

   31 Jan 2023

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. traces the roots of actors Brian Cox and Viola Davis, uncovering records from workhouses in Scotland and slave plantations in South Carolina that reveal individuals who battled to build a better life for their families.

6. 

   6. Family: Lost and Found

   7 Feb 2023

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. uses DNA detective work to solve family mysteries for actor Joe Manganiello and football star Tony Gonzalez—uncovering close relatives whose names they’ve never heard and compelling each man to rethink his own identity.

7. 

   7. Chosen

   14 Feb 2023

   Henry Louis Gates helps actors David Duchovny and Richard Kind trace their roots from Jewish communities in Eastern Europe to the United States—telling stories of triumph and tragedy that laid the groundwork for his guest’s success.

8. 

   8. And Still I Rise

   21 Feb 2023

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. reveals the unexpected family trees of activist Angela Y. Davis and statesman Jeh Johnson, using DNA and long-lost records to redefine notions of the black experience—and challenge preconceptions of America’s past.

9. 

   9. Anchormen

   28 Mar 2023

   Henry Louis Gates, Jr. introduces trail-blazing journalists Jim Acosta and Van Jones to the ancestors who blazed a trail for them, meeting runaway slaves and immigrant settlers who took enormous chances so that their descendants might thrive.

10. 

    10. Out of the Past

    4 Apr 2023

    Henry Louis Gates, Jr. uncovers the lost roots of actors Billy Crudup and Tamera Mowry-Housley, traveling back generations to recount significant events in history—from the American Revolution to the journey of the Mayflower—in a deeply personal way.