[Warning: The following contains major spoilers for 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 5 Episode 5 “Thunderstruck.”] The first Tarlos episode of the final season of 9-1-1: Lone Star features one of Ronen Rubinstein’s favorite scenes they’ve ever done.
With Carlos (Rafael L. Silva) obsessed with trying to find his father’s killer, there’s a strain on his relationship with T.K. (Rubinstein). They have to go to couples counseling, and among the problems? Carlos falls asleep during their “sexy time.”
Rubinstein loves that scene. “My showrunners were very aware of my love for Brad Pitt’s career, and they actually recreated that scene based on Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The script was very specific, the first description was, ‘Imagine Mr. and Mrs. Smith’s therapy scene. They even shot it that way and even set us up that way,’” he shared with TV Insider as part of the behind-the-scenes feature 9-1-1: Lone Star, First Response. “I felt like that scene was extra special because we didn’t really have a lot of takes to let things breathe. It’s a very fast show,” Rubinstein continued. “I feel like it’s one of the few scenes where Rashad lets us really sit in on it, sit in the awkward moments, sit in the awkward silences, and I think that makes it that much more special because if you just cut it really fast, I think the silence and the awkwardness between the words is actually one of the best parts of that scene and of that script.”
For the star, “that scene says a lot about two people who really care about each other and are working to make sure that their relationship is healthy and can grow, can continue to grow,” he notes. “And I think it’s a perfect scene to show how much love they have for each other and how much they care about each other.”
It all comes as the couple celebrates their first anniversary—and Carlos’s gift to her husband is an empty box that he’ll put his work in when he gets home at night. Rubinstein thinks it’ll work.
“Carlos is taking these big steps to make sure that his husband is heard, seen, and happy, and yeah, I think he definitely believes that he’s going to do what he says he’s going to do,” he said.
While he was nervous about his relationship, T.K. had a great conversation with Tommy, and Rubinstein loved working with Gina Torres on it. “That was my favorite scene, my favorite scene that I did with Gina,” he shared. “I’ve been dying to do my best acting with Gina Torres. She’s amazing and I felt deprived. I see her all the time and we do medical work together, but I rarely get to sit down and have a great conversation with an incredible actor. And we finally did and it was everything I could have ever wanted. She’s just the most amazing co-star, and I think you can see that in that scene, that scene really symbolizes the next step for Tommy and T.K. I think it really solidifies her as his working mother and the kind of mother figure that he’s been missing because what happened to his mother was very, very sad.” Looking ahead to what’s next for T.K. and Carlos, there’s “something really big in store for them that I think will take the relationship to the next level. You’ll know exactly what that is when it comes out,” Rubinstein teased. “I think the next challenge is going to be the ultimate answer to who these two are as a couple. And I don’t think people are going to be disappointed.”
Watch Rubinstein’s full video interview above to break down the episode, tease what’s to come, talk about the show’s ending, and more.
