'9-1-1: Lone Star': Gina Torres on Tommy's devastating loss (2023)

Spoiler alert! Don't continue if you haven't seen Monday's episode of9-1-1: Lone Star.

126 spends his days fighting fires and dangerous emergencies, but Monday9-1-1: Lonely Stationr, one of his own suffered a tragedy that changed his life.

At the end of the hour last week, paramedic Tommy Vega (Gina Torres) came home late one night to find her husband, Charles (Derek Webster), lying motionless and unconscious. The latest episode picks up on the heels of that harrowing moment when Tommy, gripped by a host of emotions, including panic and sadness, unsuccessfully tried to revive her husband, who, as we later found out, suffered an aneurysm that was nearly complete. impossible. detect.

Doing his best to compartmentalize his emotions (and with the girls fast asleep, unaware their father had died), Tommy opted to keep the devastating news to himself until he got the answers he needed, simply by asking his friends, Judd (Jim Parrack). ) and Grace. (SierraMcClain) -who already suspected that something was wrong- to pick up the children from school and take care of them during the afternoon. An impromptu meeting between Tommy and Owen (Rob Lowe) at the hospital prompted the captain of 126 to investigate what was really going on, soon discovering that Tommy was quietly processing her husband's death. When he reached out to her about losing her, Tommy finally broke down in heartbreaking sobs at the hospital, eventually bringing Judd and Grace into the circle.

So what does this mean for Tommy to move on? ET spoke to Torres about the bittersweet penultimate episode of season 2, why it took her so long to come to terms with the death of Tommy's husband, and how being a widow will change Tommy's perspective in season 3.

ET: When were you told that Tommy's husband was going to die?

Gina Torres:I found out a few episodes ago. I want to start with the good positive news. One of the things that brought that into play was the fact that Derek Webster, who plays Charles, got a job, a wonderful job that he's excited about [for the Paramount movie.mayor of kingstown]. And we're all excited for him because we all love it when we all get down to business and do the things we love to do. So in a weird way, scheduling him, the new job and this job and finding how to solve it, led to some kind of terrible solution that I wasn't happy with. But while they were trying to figure out "How does this really work?" this." He said, "It's as horrible as it is, but I'm excited about how it's going to open up Tommy's world." , like this beautiful multi-ethnic family that loves each other, that struggle that I still feel we are emblematic of what so many families were going through, especially during the pandemic, the sacrifices of loss and what love really looks like in the game and in the I definitely am mourning the loss of [her husband] and will be, and I think Tommy will be mourning this loss for some time as well.

This must have been a particularly difficult episode to film emotionally, as we see Tommy digest and process the immediate aftermath of Charles' death. The grieving process is different for everyone. how did you navigatethe immediacy of losing Tommy?

I totally agree with you. I think that studying how grief lives in people and how it lives differently in people has always fascinated me. I was really happy to see the choice that Tim Minear made for me and Tommy because it made a lot of sense. I've lost my parents, I've lost foster parents, there are people I've picked up and adopted along the way as my own close friends, and I fully understand how connected that is. She brilliantly and beautifully takes on and handles other people's pain, and it's these pauses and pauses that allow her to do her job and the fact that she falls into it so organically and naturally in this moment, I loved it. Simply I loved it. It's like she's wearing the uniform in a way that you don't see it. She's just not using it and she can't really allow herself to accept the reality of what's going on because her brain, her first responder brain is still trying to fit in and still trying to make everything okay.

What was the most difficult scene for you to film?

Jim Parrack and I have a lot of conversations, and I was there for him after the car accident and we had our scene together. We have these scenes and then we kind of laugh, like, "God, we're sick. We're sick actors," which is like we enjoy the idea of ​​going deep and being these mirrors of humanity because that's our job. We want you to feel it, we want you to understand it and connect and let the audience know that you're not alone. We see you and it happens. It is a liberation for all. Going to these places is difficult. It is difficult and demands a lot from us. It takes a lot of energy and a lot of emotional money to get to these places, but it's worth it. It's worth it when it works.

Tommy still hasn't told his daughters about their father's death. Will we see that moment? And how do you anticipate the family will change forever without Charles?

No, thank God it's not something I have to film. We save that. But we have a look at the end of the season. We take a look at what life could be like in the future. As season finales tend to do, it contains a lot. 126 is in transition. Last time we saw that the police station was blowing up. There's Tommy's transition from happily married to widowed. Owen is coming from the whole arson thing. And in our epic grand finale of deadly storms and running to the rescue because it's9-1-1in the end. So there's a lot going on. More questions than answers, so to speak. But we have to bring you back for Season 3, right?

At the moment, only Owen, Judd, and Grace know. How does the rest of the fire department support Tommy?

What you will see is the 126 family coming together in a very beautiful way.

How do you think this will change their future?

What we learn about Tommy and what we know about Tommy is that she will put these girls first. She will do whatever it takes to make sure the lights stay on and they get the love, attention, and security they need. When you're doing it, there really isn't. I can only say that she seems to think, "I had the love of my life and now I have these girls and my job." And the moment that happens, she guesses who shows up...

Is there anyone in9-1-1world in which you would like to see Tommy play or would you personally like to share a scene? Peter Krause mentionedwanting to work with youif it made sense creatively...

Hey, listen, it's at the top of my list. It's very high on my list. It's Pedro. We had a lot of fun on our show,the footprint. Absolute blast. Love it, just love it. Peter, Aisha Hinds, and Angela Bassett. Let's make it happen.

What can we expect from the season finale?

You won't be disappointed. She has all the things you love and expect.

The season 2 finale of9-1-1 lone starIt airs on Mondays at 9pm. Eastern/Pacific Time on Fox. For more information, see below.

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