As 9-1-1 approaches 100 episodes, an unexpected crossover with The Bachelor is also on the horizon. No one would have guessed that the shows could have a crossover because they’re so different—and the idea came from an unexpected place, too, as showrunner Tim Minear told Entertainment Weekly. Jennifer Love Hewitt (Maddie Buckley) is a big Bachelor fan, and she’s the one who planted the seed in Minear’s head. 9-1-1’s move to ABC also makes the potential crossover very possible. Minear spoke about how Hewitt pitched the idea to him, saying, “The whole crossover episode came about because Jennifer Love Hewitt called me after she went to one of the finales of The Bachelor. She’s a big fan of The Bachelor, and she said, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if 118 responded to a call at the Bachelor mansion?'” Planning the crossover was a breeze, involving a few exchanges of letters and Zoom calls, then filming began once the details were ironed out. Minear spoke about the collaboration process: “I reached out to ABC, and they reached out to the Bachelor people, and we got on Zoom. We just started talking about the possibilities. The Bachelor people were incredibly supportive and helpful. They volunteered to show us how to do the show, and then it was time to shoot the show. We actually brought the Bachelor crew in to film the first part of that case, so it was really The Bachelor into the 9-1-1 world when they had to call 9-1-1. That’s how it happened. It seemed like a great idea.”
The promo for 9-1-1 is fun and casual as episode 118 visits the Bachelor mansion after an emergency on set. All’s fair in love and war, but one contestant feels she’s been unfairly treated after Joey Graziadei doesn’t pick her. She plasters herself to the sidewalk in protest, prompting host Jesse Palmer to call 9-1-1. Maddie, who, like Hewitt, is a Bachelor fan, is thrilled when she picks up the phone.
Buck is the centerpiece of the episode, as the title might suggest. While answering calls at the mansion, Buck and Eddie get attention from some hopefuls who would happily go home with a firefighter. “If we’re not lucky at the mansion, we might have a better chance at the police station,” one woman comments. Elsewhere, Buck gets jealous when Eddie strikes up a friendship with Tommy, who’s now a familiar face at 118 after saving Bobby and Athena.
