‘9-1-1’s Lou Ferrigno Jr. Reflects On Tommy And Buck’s “Heart-Wrenching” Breakup And Why The Role Was A “True Blessing”

9-1-1 Season 8, Episode 6, “Confessions,” marked the end of an era for hit ABC drama — and not just because Ryan Guzman finally shaved his stache.

Following the jaw-dropping reveal that Tommy (Lou Ferrigno Jr.) was once engaged to Buck’s (Oliver Stark) ex, Abby Clark (Connie Britton), the couple called things off in an equally unexpected way.

After coming to terms with their mutual ex, Buck accepted the past, sorted his feelings for Tommy, and hoped to take their relationship to the next level. He asked Tommy to move in with him, only for Tommy to call the relationship off in a move that Lou Ferrigno Jr. calls “heart-wrenching.”

By prematurely breaking up with Buck, Tommy was partially trying to guard his own heart. But he also wanted to give Buck the opportunity to fully explore his sexuality the way he was able to, so the decision to pull away wasn’t entirely selfish. That said, Ferrigno Jr. still admits he was heartbroken by the twist.

“I feel like that’s where Tommy and I kind of part,” Ferrigno Jr. told Decider over Zoom. “Tommy is infatuated with Buck. He admires his personality, his wild spirit. So it was hard, because if Buck was this good as a partner and potential mate, I think give it a shot!”

Read on for Decider’s full interview with the 9-1-1 star, in which he breaks down Buck and Tommy’s biggest “Confessions” scenes and shares thoughts on working with Oliver Stark and Ryan Guzman, navigating online hate, Buddie, and more.

Let’s start at the top. What were your thoughts when you learned that Tommy used to be engaged to Buck’s ex, Abby in this genius, very layered twist that takes us back to the pilot?

I was in disbelief. I got a call from Tim and I’ve seen every episode, so I thought I caught everything. But I didn’t put the two together with her ex being named Tommy. He told me, “So Abby was with a guy named Tommy. I’m going to make you that Tommy.” And I’m like, “You got another Tommy that I don’t know about?” It’s unbelievable. Because if you really look back, I’ve been watching these YouTube videos, and people have been really paying attention this season.

Oh yeah, they’re on it. 

This is fortuitous. There is the moment when — even unbeknownst to me — because Tommy was not by any means queer or whatnot in my mind. If anything, he was a little homophobic. So it looks like Tim is a wizard, which he pretty much is. It looks like he’s been planning this all along and just didn’t tell us. But it’s pretty cool, especially going back to the beginning of the series. It’s so integral in the canon even more so. I was just in disbelief and was so excited to get started. 

After Buck has a chance to process that information and talk to Maddie and Josh he goes all-in on his relationship with Tommy, only for Tommy to break things off. What were your thoughts when you learned about the breakup? 

Well, can I ask you? I haven’t seen it. How did the breakup turn out?

It was definitely heartbreaking for both of them. Buck was blindsided and it seemed like Tommy didn’t want to get his heart broken, but also genuinely wanted Buck to be able to explore his sexuality more before jumping into an endgame relationship. It’s rare to see a breakup that doesn’t try to make either person look bad, and I feel like that’s what 9-1-1 achieved.

Fans may hate me forever. The online stuff has just been getting really strange. So many wonderful, wonderful fans, and the allegiance to the show — I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it. But whatever. It’s just the story. Oliver is such a professional, and we didn’t know each other very well, but in those breakup scenes, it was breaking my heart. I believe in love. I believe that you can change old patterns, and you can course correct in terms of being healthy and going about your life and choosing the right partner. But with this, I feel like that’s where Tommy and I kind of part. Because Tommy is infatuated with Buck. He admires his personality; his wild spirit. So it was hard, because if Buck was this good as a partner and potential mate, I think give it a shot! But who knows what Tim has in store.

This whole time Tommy strictly called Buck “Evan.” So that shift in the final moments of their breakup when he said “I’ll see you around Buck” really spoke volumes.

I know. It was heart-wrenching.

On a lighter note, this season gave us some fun Buck, Eddie, and Tommy scenes. What was it like finding the rhythm of that trio with Oliver and Ryan? 

So great. I mean, my sister is — I think they’re doing it already — but she’s like, “You need to be in the reboot of Three Men and a Baby. [Laughs] It’s like we’ve found this gear that we’re all working in and it’s so great. And that last turn that I had [in Episode 5’s hospital scene], the script said “an ominous moment,” and without even really discussing much of it, Ryan and I were on the same page. That whole scene, with the music and how Oliver was building those moments — I really do like that Tommy, throughout all of it, was so supportive. Through any of this superstitious type of curse-like dogma, or whatever you want to call it, he’s still entertained by it in a way. But when us three get together I feel like there’s something really special happening. 

9-1-1 fans are incredibly passionate about the show and it’s no secret that people were shipping Buck and Eddie before Tommy returned. As Buck and Tommy’s relationship progressed, did you find it challenging to play the partner of a character who a chunk of the fandom was shipping with someone else?

That’s the biz, babe. For some reason there has to be vitriol that’s spit towards any type of group that likes one thing. Some agitators just want to be mean and send death threats, and stoning death threats, and just weird stuff. But it’s written that [Buck and Tommy] are getting along, so that helps me a tremendous amount. I’ve always had a real knack myself with gelling and going with the vibe of friends — established or new — and fitting in well. With how accepting and generous Ryan and Oliver are as actors, it was just easy… Ryan is just awesome. He cracks me up. He’s so good. Every time I see him on screen I crack up. So it was not it was not difficult by any means. I’m glad it’s resonating with the fans. 

In the past, you mentioned that Tommy was originally supposed to be with Eddie, which has stuck with people. If 9-1-1 does decide to have Eddie explore his sexuality down the line and that organically leads him to Buck, would you be Team Buddie? 

Yeah. I mean, I would be. I just feel like men can have a relationship like that and not necessarily be homosexual. I have very close relationships with a number of my friends, whether we play sports or anything. I find the love in my friends that I didn’t necessarily really receive growing up. And I tell all my close male friends I love them. I kiss them on the cheek. There’s a different kinship. So I’m all about that. I don’t know. We’ll see what happens. That’s how I feel. I don’t know how Tommy’s going to feel about it, though.

Even if Teven didn’t work out, there was an undeniably warm reception when they got together. It wasn’t only an important storyline for Buck and the show. It stretched beyond 9-1-1‘s world and served as crucial representation for the LGBTQ+ community. What has playing a part in that meant to you?

I’d be remiss if I were to say that this has not been one of the true pleasures and true blessings in my life. In the span of my career, I’ve tended to play very authoritative, strong characters with strong presences who are not very vulnerable and not very three-dimensional. And Tommy was defined. At first was excited about the show. And then Tim dropped the storyline, and I knew he knows what he’s doing. The work he’s put out for decades has been so good, and I’ve gotten to know him so much better this whole experience. It’s just been one wild ride. I’ve been training as an actor my whole life. I’ve always been a servant of my craft. And this was one of the real opportunities for me to stretch, because Tim saw something in me. He believed in me that I could do it, and I knew I could do it. And we did it! It’s amazing.

How has the response to this role compared to past projects?

Fans will reach out to me and tell me all the wonderful things I’ve always wanted to hear as an actor about my work. But it’s almost as if this project has given them the comfortability with me to to express those sentiments. I’m just so grateful. I take this very seriously. I love working in this business. I love collaborating with artists. It’s what I’m here to do. And so I’m very humble when it comes to the words on the page and the craft and all of these things. I brought everything I have to it. And it’s opened a lot of people’s eyes, not only in terms of storyline, but every comment: “It’s so nice to see two gay masculine characters on TV.” I don’t even know when would that happen? A friend of mine was like, “Whenever it’s two gay characters, typically it’s gay actors playing gay characters and everybody knows they’re gay.” If this was two other actors, for instance, you would probably be like, “They’re going to kiss.” But I think because Oliver and I are so masculine, it definitely caught everybody by surprise. I used the perception of me to my advantage through what really lives in here, through the character. And it’s really opened my heart. So to hear these things has really been one of the ultimate blessings in my life. 

Is there anything you learned from the role — either as an actor or a person — that you’re going to take with you moving forward? 

So much. I’ve never intended to play this safe, this career of mine. I wanted to stretch. Based on my life and events that have happened in my life. I feel like I’m, in a sense, on borrowed time. So if I’m going to do it, I’m gonna go full speed ahead. And this is the first time anyone’s really seen me in the light of an actor that can pull this off. I always could. But Tim was the one that actually gave me a shot to do it.

One thing that I will absolutely take with me is if you’re afraid of something, go after it. I think I was afraid of being misperceived or of things that never were going to happen based on how I was raised and how society treated me my whole life. But it was such a wonderful, beautiful arc, and I was and I knew in my heart, “I have to do this.” Where I come from, it’s a world of competition, of athleticism, of taunting, of stuff that’s very not supportive. I have a tumultuous relationship with my father. He was never really one to be artistically curious and artistically brave. So I just had to do it.

Moving forward, I would say that unless you die, you’re going to get better. I almost died with a severe appendectomy when I was 15. So what’s the worst that can happen? Literally the worst thing to happen was some random person writing nonsense death threats. Everything has been overwhelmingly positive, and it’s just made me want to drive harder and push forward. Getting the response from people who really are affected by my performance makes me want to read my sides over 15 times and put those little extra bits of flair on. When I go to an audition, I want to commit further. I want to learn. I want to be better so I could develop this character or one day have another character that will really resonate with fans in a big way. 

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

New episodes of 9-1-1 premiere Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. on ABC with next-day streaming on Hulu.