9-1-1’s Aisha Hinds and Tracie Thoms Have Their Family Back — and Now They’re Ready to Have Fun 9-1-1 stars Aisha Hinds and Tracie Thoms love the life their characters, Hen and Karen, have built together — and now they’re ready to let loose and have a little fun.
“I mean, I just want a little, like, warmth, you know? I want to go to Disneyland,” Thoms, 49, told Us Weekly exclusively on Thursday, October 17, while discussing the eighth season of the ABC hit series. “Let’s just spend time with these kids where we just get to do normal family things. Not constantly fighting for the right to be together, you know what I mean? We’ve been through so much, trying to have this family. We’ve been through every step of this journey.”
Thoms and Hinds, 48, have played Karen and Hen, respectively, since the series began in 2018. The pair have faced immunity, infidelity, family drama, and a few dangerous exes. In many ways, the struggle has been relentless for the on-screen couple — and they’re both ready for brighter days.
“Every moment of trying to do IVF, trying to have a baby naturally and it [failed], it was hard, and we even had a little girl [Nia] that we had to support to get her back to her mom, even though it was painful,” Thoms explains. “Every step [was hard]. I just wanted them to be able to breathe, survive, and be a loving family.”
‘9-1-1-‘ Season 8: Everything You Need to Know About What’s Next for Buck, Eddie and the Rest of the 118 Warning: There are spoilers below for Episode 4 of 9-1-1 Season 8. It looks like Thoms might actually get his wish. In the latest episode of 9-1-1, airing Thursday, Hen and Karen battle to regain their foster license and custody of their adopted daughter Mara (Askyler Bell), as Councilwoman Olivia Ortiz (Veronica Falcon)—who blames Hen for her son’s death—continues her plan to ruin their lives. While Veronica thinks she’s defeated the duo (and broken up Station 118 in the process), a last-minute twist exposes her true intentions and puts Mara back under Hen and Karen’s care. With Ortiz gone — and Gerrard (Brian Thompson) taking a job at Hotshots so Bobby can return to his rightful place as captain of the 118 — there could be a clear path for Hen and Karen. As for the specifics of what they want, Thoms looked to the season 6 episode “Tomorrow,” which highlighted Hen and Karen’s love story before they had kids, as an example. The duo also had an issue to address with the famous karaoke scene from the season 7 bachelor party episode.
“I feel like we were robbed of the karaoke moments that we could have had,” Thoms said with a laugh, recalling the scene where the couple leaves the party early. “So I think that would be fun. I just love it whenever Karen and Hen get to, like, let loose a little bit because it’s so rare for them to do that.”
When Us suggested a night of partying with Evan “Buck” Buckley (Oliver Stark) for a possible “Henren” storyline, Hinds and Thoms both agreed that they’d “love” to see the trio out on the town together — especially if there was singing involved.
“I was backstage rooting for Traci to loosen those belts on the show,” Hinds said, referring to Thoms’ famous singing voice. “It was such a missed opportunity and not at all subtle. I was like, ‘Why isn’t Traci written to sing a song on this show?!’ I need that to happen right now.”
For her part, Thoms joked that it would be fun to discover that Karen has “hidden talents” that audiences haven’t yet heard about.
“It’s like, ‘Oh, wait, you’re a rocket scientist, and you can sing a little bit!’” she said with a laugh. “I mean, I’m all for it. But, yeah, Aisha was completely unsubtle in her support of me singing on the show. She just screamed.”
Hen running for city council to replace Ortiz — and a highly anticipated “Karen Begins” episode — were also ideas floated. “I love that. I love that. Let’s do it,” Hinds said before adding a polite call to action to showrunner Tim Minear: “Can you hear us, Tim? Can you hear us?”
While the actresses are hopeful for better days ahead, Hinds told Us there were plenty of aspects of Hen’s scenes with Councilman Ortiz that felt satisfying, especially going toe-to-toe with Falcón, 58. “Veronica Falcón is definitely a formidable foe for us,” she said. “She’s an incredible actress. And when she came in, it was hard to hate her because she was a woman, but then the viciousness with which she acted and led to punish us, and
