Explore Finding Your Roots: Season 12

Published on January 05, 2026 by PBS

Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. returns for its 12th season on PBS. 

Over the course of ten new episodes, Gates and his team use genealogical detective work and cutting-edge DNA analysis to trace the family trees of twenty compelling guests, telling stories that illuminate America’s fundamental diversity. 

As the pages turn in each guest’s book of life, emotional revelations give way to complex questions about identity. Through Gates’ discerning touch, his guests learn what every family history shares—love, courage, and sacrifice—and how our histories transcend borders, merging to form a national root system fortified by difference as well as commonality. Along the way, viewers are transported from coastal Africa to rural Texas; from Muslim communities in northern India to the ancestral lands of the Cherokee Nation; from villages in the Philippines to George Washington’s camp at Valley Forge—all in search of the stories that will bring our guests’ ancestors to life.

Guests include actors Kate Burton, Lizzy Caplan, Kristin ChenowethLiza Colón-Zayas, Darren Criss, Danielle Deadwyler, America Ferrera, Sanaa Lathan, and Delroy Lindo; comedian Hasan Minhaj; basketball stars Brittney Griner and Chris Paul; musicians Flea, Rhiannon Giddens, Lizzo, and Wiz Khalifa; playwright Tracy Letts; talk show host Sara Haines; media mogul Barry Diller; and filmmaker Spike Lee. 

Meet the Season 12 Guests

America Ferrera
Barry Diller
Brittney Griner
Chris Paul
Danielle Deadwyler
Darren Criss
Delroy Lindo
Flea
Hasan Minhaj
Kristin Chenoweth
Liza Colón Zayas
Lizzo
Lizzy Caplan
Rhiannon Giddens
Sanaa Lathan
Sara Haines
Spike Lee
Tracy Letts
Wiz Khalifa