Lou Ferrigno Jr. on Tommy Return and Buck Kiss

[This story contains spoilers from season seven, episode five of 9-1-1, “You Don’t Know Me.”]

A couple of months ago, 9-1-1 co-creator and showrunner Tim Minear reached out to actor Lou Ferrigno Jr. — who had guest-starred in three flashback episodes of the second season — about reprising his role as firefighter Tommy Kinard in the seventh season of the hit Fox-turned-ABC first-responder drama.

Ferrigno Jr., who says he had nothing but fond memories of working with the writer and producer years ago, was instantly intrigued to learn that Minear was in the early stages of writing a multi-episode arc that would allow viewers to check back in with Tommy in the present. That storyline, as it turns out, would involve Evan “Buck” Buckley (Oliver Stark), the ostensibly straight character who would navigate his newfound attraction to Tommy in the landmark 100th episode, which aired last Thursday.

“It was a discussion if I would be willing to have this romantic moment [with Buck], which would be very dissimilar to what I have been really doing thus far,” Ferrigno Jr. tells The Hollywood Reporter in his first official interview about his return to 9-1-1. While he has been offered an opportunity to play queer characters in the past, the actor says this was the first time he felt both creatively excited and well-suited enough to take on a role of that nature, and he knew full well that it would shake up one of the most integral parts of the show. “[Minear] laid out the arc, and it was a really, really cool situation, and I agreed to it.”

Tommy was reintroduced in the third episode of this season as an LAFD Air Operations pilot who flies into a hurricane to help Buck, Eddie (Ryan Guzman), Hen (Aisha Hinds) and Chimney (Kenneth Choi) rescue Athena (Angela Bassett) and Bobby (Peter Krause) from their capsized cruise ship. After discovering that his best friend Eddie has developed an immediate rapport with Tommy, a bewildered Buck can’t help but feel envious of their connection. But it’s not until the final minutes of the fourth episode that Buck realizes he has developed feelings for Tommy.

The storyline between Buck and Tommy “evolved over time, but I knew that it was going to be with Oliver, and I’ve always been a fan of Oliver and his work,” Ferrigno Jr. says. “I think that it was going to be an experience that would be very beautiful and tender. It just goes beyond labels. It goes beyond names, groups, orientations. It’s two connected souls, and that’s what I wanted to achieve.”

This week’s midseason finale continues that storyline, with Buck and Tommy’s first date not quite going according to plan, but not deterring them from exploring their mutual attraction. Below, Ferrigno Jr. — who is best known for his roles in S.W.A.T. (whose seventh season he has been shooting at the same time as 9-1-1), Outer Banks, Stargirl and How I Met Your Mother — opens up about how he worked with Minear and Stark to bring that unexpected kiss to life, the hidden backstory he personally established for Tommy, and why he thinks fans who want Buck and Eddie to become romantically involved should still embrace Tommy.

(Come back to THR on Friday for an interview with Minear, who explained his decision to bring Tommy back and explore Buck’s bisexuality, while previewing what to expect from the second half of the season.)

When do you think Tommy became aware of his own attraction to Buck, and when did he realize that Buck was feeling similarly attracted to him?

I’ll cue you into who I built Tommy to be: Tommy has had a hard life. He has always been on his own. He flies helicopters. Machinery is his thing. It’s very cathartic for him to be working on machines, to be alone. He had a very tough childhood, and he doesn’t take people for granted, nor does he ever want to put someone else in a position he has been in [himself]. So he will put off his sexual desires if something’s not real and right.

I mean, who’s not attracted to Buck? He’s lovable. He’s a hot dude. He’s a hero. Tommy is just vibing [at first], and then all of a sudden, when he just got that cue [in episode four] — when Buck said, “I’ve been trying to get your attention,” and Tommy is like, “My attention?” — Tommy’s been through enough in life to know to seize the moment. I mean, Tommy is the coolest guy! He seized the moment, and it seemed like it was a successful moment.

Did Tim Minear give you any backstory about Tommy’s own coming-out journey? How do you think Tommy got to this point in his life where he is so comfortable with who he is?

Tim tells me where we are now [in the story], and I justify how I got here for Tommy. I don’t want to get too into the details, but from what I’ve gathered, Tommy has a car lift, he flies helicopters, he’s a firefighter, he does Muay Thai — a lot of very hyper-masculine activities. I’m not sure if that’s just a way to deal with trauma from a lifetime ago. Is it something that he implemented from guidance from positive male figures in his life? Was he fat and abused [as a child]? I myself was a fat youth. My inner child obesity got the best of me and I was heavy, so I folded a lot of my own things in there [for Tommy].

But Tim specifically said, “Tommy’s the type of guy that would be the all-star football player in high school, and he’d still stick up for the nerdy kid. Just like you, Lou.” And I was like, “What?” [Laughs.] Tim is incredible. I just was so excited to do this, and I’m so excited to see the response. It is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.

Let’s talk about the fan response. It’s no secret that some fans have been clamoring for this kind of storyline on 9-1-1 for a long time, and even from the little interactions you’ve had with fans on social media, it is clear that many of them have embraced Tommy becoming an important part of Buck’s journey of self-discovery. Do you feel a certain weight or responsibility when it comes to depicting a story that means so much to so many?

I respect anyone’s opinion and their disposition in any way, shape or form. This is my job to tell this story of how Tommy is, and I think it’s fascinating. I’m very wary of social media platforms, especially Twitter, because it’s all nameless, faceless words being spit out, and it takes a thousand “Attaboys!” to erase one “You’re a piece of shit.” So I don’t want to dive too much into what the fans are dealing with. I can just do my part.

I briefly touched [Buck’s] chin to bring him in [for the first kiss] — and they’re very real situations. I’m putting myself in the situation: If it’s my friend and I’m here, and I’m going to go in for this kiss, that would just come about. But when I did the chin thing, [the fans] were on Twitter [asking me], “Was this scripted or not?” And then I just randomly chimed in because I was like, “No, it was my choice. Do you approve?” And then they were all like, “Oh, my God! Oh, my God!” And then basically they’re saying, “Thank you for being so gentle with Buck.”

They really know these characters, and that’s so incredible for a fandom to feel like they have personal relationships [with the characters]. That’s a testament to Oliver and to the entire cast, and it’s really a testament to Tim. I’ve said this so many times: When I leave set on 9-1-1, I feel good about myself. It’s hard to feel good about yourself as an actor, because you’re always in question, you’re always in limbo. But the crew is great, the set is great. I think this moment is so deserving of this show because they’ve taken so many strides to be progressive and inclusive, and I think this is just another way, and I’m so thrilled to have been part of it.

Buck and Tommy’s kiss has been the talk of network TV for the last week. What kinds of conversations did you have with Oliver or Tim about that moment?

Oliver and I spoke [the day before we shot it]. We met briefly when I was shooting the three episodes of season two, and I think about 50 to 70 percent of the feelings I have about someone happen in the first five minutes. [I can usually tell] if they’re being genuine. I really liked Oliver. It was originally, possibly going to be with Eddie and Tommy, but that fell through. But Oliver was willing, and I think that Oliver is just such a brave, generous actor.

I’ve done so much action, so much fighting, and so many intense scenes. My aunt has to see me die in every other movie, which she hates. But this was a challenge for me because there is a real social stigma against same-sex … anything. It’s like, Do you watch any of your friends have sex? No. So what business is it of yours [what queer people are doing]?

I don’t necessarily like any couples — heterosexual, homosexual, anything — making out during a film for a long period. It doesn’t help the story. But the tension [in the scene] was going to be until the kiss happened, and then the little chin thing is what happened, and we had a terrific moment. So we kind of just discovered it as we went through. We’re solid in our craft, so that a lot of it was just going to happen on the day. There was no real [planning]. We were just being very sensitive actors in knowing when that crescendo was going to happen to make that decision.

Why do you think it was important for Tommy to be the one to make the first move? And what is going through his mind when he makes that decision to lean in and kiss Buck?

What was communicated to me is, because Tommy’s a little older, he’s a little more experienced and he knows who he is. The funny thing about the fandom is, you have to do something and not like it to know what you like. So what if [Buck] were to get with Eddie and not like it — and that’s it? What if at least he could work out the kinks with Tommy? So I’m like, “Y’all should be all for this, and nothing’s set in stone.” It could happen, and it could be great. It could not.

There were a couple moments where Tim and I discussed if Tommy was seeming a little predatory coming in [and being part of the story just in general]. If Tommy is coming in to hang out with Eddie, and then now he’s going to this place with Eddie, and then he goes to Eddie’s apartment, that’s a little predatory. I think the misdirection was so great. I mean, is Tommy interested in Eddie romantically? We don’t know. That’s what TV is supposed to be, and that’s why it’s so beautiful that everyone was kind of taken by surprise. Watching these reaction videos is so great because they don’t know me. They’re shocked when they see this kiss.

Tommy was going to go over [to Buck’s loft apartment] and explain what happened [with Eddie], and then they just had this nice moment. I’m sure you’ve had this experience where you like someone, or maybe you would like them, but they wouldn’t like you. And then all of a sudden, it’s like, “Oh, my God. Wait, what?” And then the rambling had to happen. But I think [Tommy made the first move] because Tommy was more in a position of control with who he was in a guidance position to lead Buck to see where he needs to be.

What else do you remember from that day of shooting?

Tim knew this was big for me as well. This was something that’s special, and I was like, “Are you going to be there?” And he was like, “I may.” So I showed up, and he was on set. And after one or two takes, he’s like, “Oh, I’m not worried about this at all.” And I was like, “Okay, then we’ll make the best of it.” And Kenny [Choi] told me, “Tim never comes to set.”

In this week’s episode, Tommy tells Buck that firefighters are a lot more accepting than he would think about one’s sexual orientation. Did you and Tim ever discuss any labels for Tommy? Is he gay? Bisexual?

What Tim said is, “Tommy is gay, bi, or whatever,” and that’s that. I don’t think there’s been much of his past really discussed other than what you see this week. But I don’t think Tommy necessarily, at this point, is the guy that abides by what you want to call him. I mean, the guy flies into hurricanes, lands on the belly of cruise ships, and saves the day. Come on! (Laughs.)

After their date goes awry, Tommy tells Buck that he thinks he’s adorable but not necessarily ready for a relationship. Walk me through Tommy’s headspace in this episode. He doesn’t want to pressure Buck into anything he doesn’t want to do, but he also seems very happy when Buck reaches out to him again.

Tommy’s not embarrassed about who he is, and they did share a real moment. But by the end of the dinner scene and how Buck acts — wait, did you like it? Was it funny?

I really did. It was very funny. Buck called himself an ally to the LGBTQ+ community. Much like Maddie, I was like, “Bro, you’re much more than an ally now!”

(Laughs.) Oh, my God. [The fans are] giving Eddie hell for yelling or something. He is like, “BUCK!” in the promo.

Yeah, the version of that line that they put in the final cut wasn’t even that loud.

Yeah. (Laughs.) It was like an echo.

Tommy knows what he wants and what he will put up with and not tolerate, just because people have to be whole in order to create a healthy relationship. You can’t necessarily be the one to fill in each other’s gaps and voids and whatnot. So he’s not heartbroken [about Buck]. Tommy’s had a hard enough time as it is hiding his whole past, his whole history. He’s had to overcompensate [in his life] by being this big tough guy, and you can see everything played beautifully.

In “Chimney Begins” [season two, episode 12] and “Hen Begins” [season two, episode nine], he’s an angry guy, he’s not happy with himself. He’s just a bully, and he is going with Captain Gerard [the bigoted former captain of the 118, played by Brian Thompson]. But by [his] third episode of the second season, he comes around. And based on that bar scene in “Bobby Begins Again” [season two, episode 16], that’s where Tim thought that the chemistry [with the rest of the cast] would be great.

But back to your question: It’s never easy to get your hopes up and then be let down. At the end of the pizza scene, Tommy tries to play it off as good as he can. As two men, they want to get back to work, and they want to do their thing and play it off as if they’re not affected. So that was [Tommy’s] initial reaction. It’s happened before to him, whether it’s gotten physical with someone or has not been requited … and it sucks if it’s not requited. But by the coffee scene [at the end of the episode], Buck asks Tommy to go there, and Tommy is just being honest and open. Tommy has nothing to hide.

By the end of the episode, Buck invites Tommy to his sister Maddie’s (Jennifer Love Hewitt) wedding. So, can we safely assume that you will be in the next episode?

Tommy will be in [the next episode]. With Tommy, there’s a dramatic entrance. He’s not necessarily on time, but he’s right where he needs to be.

The writers are still finishing the scripts for the final three episodes of this truncated season. Will you be sticking around beyond the next episode?

[Leans back in his chair and shrugs.] I don’t know. That’s something I don’t want to necessarily get into yet. But if everybody can just put down the Buck-Eddie relationship for a moment — I mean, they’re great. I love them together. It’s kind of funny because I crack up when I see Tommy with Eddie. Tommy is just so excited. Eddie is just this amazing guy, and honestly, Ryan [Guzman] is awesome. I had the easiest time being just buddy-buddy with him. In some of the pictures, I’m like, “Ah, this guy!” (Laughs.)

There’s another season, so it’s not like this is the end of the show. There’s so much more [to come], and Tommy’s a very interesting character, so, hopefully, Tommy will be around more after next week’s episode. We shall see. There’s hope in the air.

9-1-1 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on ABC. Episodes stream the next day on Hulu. The show will return from its midseason break on May 2.