SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from “Buck Bothered and Bewildered,” the fourth episode of “9-1-1” Season 7 on ABC.
With the exception of a particularly well-coordinated Bachelor mansion scene, the 100th episode of “9-1-1” didn’t feature any emergencies that rivaled the most bizarre disasters the show has experienced in its seven-season run. But it did contain what was potentially the most shocking moment the Ryan Murphy-produced first responder show has ever seen: a kiss between straight-laced Evan “Buck” Buckley (Oliver Stark) and another male character.
For a large segment of “9-1-1” fans who have been pairing Buck and his straight best friend Eddie (Ryan Guzman) as a romantic couple since before the show moved from Fox to ABC this season, the fact that the man is not Eddie, but Eddie’s new friend, Tommy Kinard (Louis Ferrigno Jr.), will likely be confusing to them.
Those viewers can take comfort in knowing that Stark himself had no idea that the kiss between Buck and Tommy—and the promise of an upcoming date—was going to happen, he told Variety, until “9-1-1” had already begun filming Season 7. “I wasn’t told as much as I was asked,” Stark said, recalling the pitch call he received from series co-creator Tim Minear around Episode 3 of this season. “He reached out to Lou, who plays Tommy—he wanted to know he was in before he gave it to me. So, without too much notice, he said, ‘I think this is the most authentic way to continue Buck’s storyline.’ And I said, ‘I’m 100% in.’” Stark said that this quirky love story arc for Buck “would be great” if it continued in future episodes. “I think it’s worth it and I think it’s worthy—and I’m excited to have the opportunity to tell it,” he said.
Read more from Variety’s interview with Stark about the 100th episode of “9-1-1” in the Q&A below.
When I watched the episode, I doubted my intuition that Buck and Tommy were going to kiss until it actually happened—and I think other fans might think the same, because we’ve never really seen Buck from an LGBTQ perspective. What reaction do you expect to get to the kiss?
