9-1-1 star Oliver Stark has opened up about being cut from the show’s crossover with Doctor Odyssey. Stark plays firefighter Evan “Buck” Buckley on the ABC procedural. Hollywood is full of surprises, and sometimes, those surprises don’t work in favor of our favorite stars. Fans of 9-1-1 were thrilled at the possibility of a crossover with Doctor Odyssey, but disappointment hit when it was revealed that Evan “Buck” Buckley, played by Oliver Stark, had been cut from the event. What happened behind the scenes? Why was Buck left out? Let’s dive deep into the unexpected twist that left fans heartbroken.
Doctor Odyssey and 9-1-1 aired their first crossover event last week, as LAPD officer Athena Grant (Angela Bassett) boarded the Odyssey in search of two suspicious passengers. This crossover was made possible because both shows were co-created by mega-producer Ryan Murphy and now both air on the same network, after 9-1-1 was picked up by ABC following its Fox cancelation in 2023. Speaking to Screen Rant, Stark confirmed that he was initially contacted about being part of the crossover before creative plans for the episode changed.
“There was no pitch,” he confirmed. “Well, there was a pitch of, ‘Would you want to do this?’ But no story pitch. I had said yes at the time, but obviously, things moved in a direction where it was just Angela’s character. So yeah, I don’t know what it would’ve been.”
The actor went on: “Having seen some clips from the show, I can make probably somewhat educated guess as to what it might have been, but I have no real knowledge, so I’ll probably leave it at that.” “I’m sure I would’ve had a good time over there. Next time,” he hinted. “I had said yes at the time, but obviously, things moved in a direction where it was just Angela’s character.”
Stark recently eyed another potential crossover for 9-1-1 where the first responders from the show could cross paths with Nathan Fillion’s squad from The Rookie. “I believe their show is set in Los Angeles, so that seems to make sense to me that there could be some mass casualty event that all the police stations and all the firehouses are at,” he told Collider. “Or, a more fun route, I believe they do police versus firefighter football games or whatever. So maybe we rock up on The Rookie and take them down in some sporting event.”
He then joked: “Although, if we’re going over to their show, I assume they’d have them win. So maybe not. But yeah, that just seems like a fun and easy, real kind of way to go about it. So, I’m still game for, one day, The Rookie crossover.” While it’s disappointing that Buck didn’t make it to the Doctor Odyssey crossover, it’s not the end of the road. Oliver Stark remains an integral part of 9-1-1, and his character’s journey continues to unfold. With Hollywood’s unpredictable nature, who knows? Maybe Buck will get an even bigger spotlight in the next crossover event!
