Yes, 9-1-1 is known for the big rescues and wild opening emergencies — Season 10 kicks off on Thursday, October 15, with a volcano in the middle of Los Angeles — but it’s also known for its heart and the relationships between the first responders. And so when Oliver Stark stopped by our office at the end of last season, we had to have him name some of his favorite moments between Buck and the other characters.
Considering how important Bobby (Peter Krause) was to Buck, it’s no surprise that he named more than one—or that the first is their final scene together as his captain died. “I haven’t watched that scene in a long time, since it aired really,” he says in the video above, “but his ‘I love you, kid’ I think will always hit me deep in the feels. Pete is such a fantastic actor and that relationship between them is just so important to Buck’s journey, but then also important to me. I feel like I’ve, in many ways, grown up on this show and that being such a big part of it will mean that it’s always meaningful to me.”
His pick for Athena (Angela Bassett) also speaks to how much that relationship has grown over the years. “In ‘Buck Begins,’ where she comes up to him at the end of the episode,” Stark recalls, “She says something about you just being Buck. And I said, I don’t know what that means. And she says, never giving up. I think that the growth of their relationship from who they were to each other in the pilot to a moment like that is just really beautiful.” He also reveals when there was a Buck and Athena moment cut.
For Buck’s sister, Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Stark points to the pinky promise that’s become part of their relationship. “I love us finding places to put it in,” he adds. “Most recent being the episode when their parents came to town and we’re fretting around Buck’s house and then we hear them pull up and we’re like, we should do a pinky promise here. It’s our thing of solidarity.”
Stark points to the end of Buck and Eddie’s (Ryan Guzman) road trip turned hell episode, after the two are reunited, for his favorite moment between the best friends: “I love that they have a little chuckle to each other about what’s just happened. I think that perfectly sums up their relationship that they can go through these horrors together, but then once reunited, kind of make light of it immediately and there’s a certain security and safety to be able to do that with each other.”
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His favorite Buck and Chimney (Kenneth Choi) moment also comes from Season 9, when his character tells his captain about his pill dependency. “The fact that Chimney jumps to, ‘We’re not going to desert you through this, we’re going to be there,’ that scene was so fun — not fun, fun as an actor, but it was just a really beautiful set that day,” Stark shares. “I love it when you have certain scenes and everybody is cognizant of the vibe and it was just such a peaceful, quiet set and it was just allowed to play out and breathe. I knew that the actor that Kenny is and we just made such space for each other and it was just a really quiet, loving experience.”
He then goes back to Season 3 for his favorite Buck and Hen (Aisha Hinds) scene, when his character returned to the 118. “I come back expecting a banner or a big to-do and there’s nothing, but then she brings Buck a little cake,” he says.
Watch the full video above for more of Oliver Stark’s favorite Buck moments with the rest of the characters.
9-1-1, Season 10 Premiere, Thursday, October 15, 8/7c, ABC
Watch the full video on TV Insider.
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