9-1-1 Twist: A Shocking Bombshell Leaves Buck With *One* Choice — Yep, They’re Going There!
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A blast from the past derailed Buck’s budding romance with Tommy, but for those who are new to 9-1-1, you may be wondering: Who is Abby and why was she so important? While Abby was the reason for the end of Buck and Tommy’s relationship, she could be the catalyst for Buck’s next — and even greater — romance that’s been a long time coming. (And we’re not talking about a reunion between Buck and Abby!)
Who was Abby Clark on 9-1-1?
Abigail “Abby” Clark, played by Connie Britton, was an original character on 9-1-1 and worked as a 9-1-1 dispatcher for Los Angeles before her exit in the Season 1 finale. She was later replaced by Maddie Buckley (now Han), who took over as 9-1-1‘s dispatcher in Season 2.
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The 9-1-1 pilot introduced Abby as a character who felt stuck in her life and unlucky with love after her ex-boyfriend, Tommy (later revealed to be firefighter Tommy Kinard — more on that later), left her a year prior. In the pilot, Abby was introduced to firefighter Evan “Buck” Buckley when he assisted Los Angeles Police Department sergeant Athena Grant on a call. After that, Abby and Buck started talking to each other on the phone, before they eventually met in person and started dating.
The two continued to date long distance after Abby left 9-1-1 in the Season 1 finale to move to Ireland following the death of her mother, Patricia, who had Alzheimer’s. Buck eventually broke up with Abby in Season 2, however, when he started to lose hope that Abby would ever return to Los Angeles and moved out of her apartment for good.
Fast forward to 9-1-1 Season 7 and Buck starts dating Tommy, a former firefighter from Station 118. Buck and Tommy break up in Season 8 — during their six-month anniversary, no less — after Buck found out that Tommy was once engaged to Abby for two years. (Buck learned about Tommy and Abby’s relationship when Tommy, who was unaware of that Buck and Abby knew each other, told Buck that he heard his ex-fiancee went a little “nuts” after their breakup and dated a “himbo” half her age — referring to Buck.)
Though Buck was able to work through his concerns about Tommy’s previous relationship with Abby, Tommy breaks up with Buck due to his belief that Buck wasn’t ready to move in together and that he wasn’t The One for Buck.
Why did Abby leave 9-1-1?
Abby left 9-1-1 in the Season 1 finale, “A Whole New You,” following the death of her mother, Patricia, who passed away from Alzheimer’s earlier in the season. During the finale, Abby tells Buck that she plans to leave Los Angeles and go to Ireland to complete her mother’s wishes to travel the world and express herself. Despite her feelings for Buck and how much she’s changed him after breakup with Tommy, Abby tells Buck that she has to go. The finale’s last scene shows Buck saying goodbye to Abby at the airport.
Despite her exit as a series regular, Abby returned to 9-1-1 in Season 3, Episode 17, “Powerless,” when she was involved in a serious train accident and called in the incident to 9-1-1, where her call was answered by Abby. Abby also appeared in the following episode, “What’s Next?” when Abby and Buck reunited as they helped survivors evacuate the crash of the train. After the crash, Abby and Buck had a conversation where they discussed Abby ghosting Buck after she left for Ireland and both found closure for the end of their relationship.
Why did Connie Britton leave 9-1-1?
Co-creator Ryan Murphy told TVLine in 2018 that Britton had only signed a one-year contract for 9-1-1 as a last-minute favor to him, which is why Abby was written out after Season 1. “The first script came together so easily. And then I went to Angela [Bassett] and she said yes right away, and Peter Krause said yes without reading the script,” he said. “And then Connie stepped in as a favor. So we just rushed it and it paid off. I was shocked at how well it did. It was that bizarre network hit where it was consistent every week.”
Despite her exit after Season 1, Murphy also told the site at the time that 9-1-1 was trying to renegotiate Britton’s contract to have her continue the series. “We’re in the process of renegotiating her deal so she can come in and do a couple of episodes to keep her character alive,” he said. “She really loves the cast and crew and she’s very hopeful that that can happen. And, in the interim, we will be casting other parts in that call center. We’re going after big names.”
He also hinted that Britton’s one-season contract was so that she didn’t have to lock herself into a show for so many year after her long runs on other primetime series like Nashville and Friday Night Lights.
“Connie and I are talking and she’s optimistic [that Abby will be back] in some capacity,” he said. “I think the days of actors signing seven-year contracts and then not being able to do anything but that one particular show are over. Sarah Paulson was a regular on two shows of mine at once, and she went and did two movies in between. Actors have much more power and maneuverability than they had before. And I think that’s a good thing.”
Is Abby coming back to 9-1-1?
At the time of writing, there has been no news about Abby’s return to 9-1-1. Oliver Stark, who plays Buck, also confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter in November 2024 that Britton is done playing Abby after her guest appearances in Season 3.
“She came back in Season 3 and I feel like she’s like, I’ve done my time on 9-1-1. It would always be a pleasure, of course, to see and work with her again. But I don’t think it was in the cards necessarily this time around,” he said. “We’re working under the constraints of 42-minute episodes on TV, so there were some more scenes, originally, of Buck spiraling and spinning out a little bit about this and talking to Bobby about it at one point that didn’t quite end up making it into the episode. But I think you get everything you need out of the scene with Maddie [Jennifer Love Hewitt] and Josh [Bryan Safi].”
Thee also isn’t a place for Abby on the series, given that Maddie has taken her spot at the 9-1-1 call center and that Buck has moved on romantically. While Buck and Tommy’s breakup could open the door for a reunion between him and Abby, should Abby return, the split was more likely to serve as a stepping stone for a romantic relationship between Buck and with his friend, Eddie Diaz, whom fans have been wanting since Season 2.
Ryan Guzman, who plays Eddie, even hinted at the possibility of a relationship between Buck and Eddie in an interview with TV Insider in May 2024. “We just got to the point where Buck is having this own personal growth of himself, so it’s like baby steps towards anything and if anything,” he said.
Stark, for his part, also at Buck and Eddie’s deepening relationship after Tommy and Buck’s breakup with Buck goes to Eddie for comfort.
“It speaks volumes of their relationship that when Eddie opens that door and he’s there with his collar popped and in his underpants, Buck looks him up and down, he takes that in, and it’s like, whatever,” he told Variety. “You’re dealing with your stuff, I’m dealing with my stuff — we don’t really even need to talk about them right now, let’s just have some company and be there for each other. I think it’s very much a show of who they are to each other, and not everything needs to be spoken and that they can both be kind of dealing with the things in their lives in very different ways in that moment.”
He continued, “Eddie’s is very much a moment of joy and release, and Buck’s is obviously quite a downer. But they can still be there for each other while they’re dealing with things in such separate ways. So, I think it really speaks volumes to the strength of their bond.”
9-1-1 is available to stream on Hulu.
Watch ‘9-1-1’ on Hulu
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