9-1-1 Kills Off a Major Character with Shocking Death: ‘A Bold Creative Choice on a Bold Show’

Oliver Stark as Evan Buck Buckley, Jennifer Love Hewitt as Maddie Kendall, Kenneth Choi as Howie “Chimney” Han, Angela Bassett as Athena Grant, Peter Krause as Bobby Nash, Aisha Hinds as Henrietta “Hen” Wilson, Gavin McHugh as Christopher Diaz, and Ryan Guzman as Eddie Diaz. Photo:

Justin Stephens/Disney

WARNING: This article contains spoilers for 9-1-1 season 8 episode 15.

9-1-1 just said goodbye to one beloved character, Captain Bobby Nash, played by Peter Krause.

Before the Thursday, April 17 episode “Lab Rats” aired, speculation circulated for weeks that a lead character had died, after photos surfaced of a large-scale funeral scene for the Fox drama being filmed in Los Angeles.

However, it wasn’t clear which character fans would be saying goodbye to, and three characters were all facing near-death circumstances. The episode concluded the show’s two-part contagion event, and there were signs that the three series’ leads could have died.

Ravi (Anirudh Pisharody) momentarily ran out of oxygen before Bobby could save the firefighter. Or Hen (Aisha Hinds) would have a fatal outcome after she sustained injuries from the laboratory explosion and Bobby performed surgery on her.

Chimney (Kenneth Choi) fell ill from the symptoms of the mutated version of CCHF, or Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever. Rather than use the final antidote to save himself, Bobby used it on Chimney. He told Buck (Oliver Stark) that he can’t leave the contained laboratory.

He then asks Buck to bring in his wife, Athena (Angela Bassett), to say goodbye, who urges Buck to get a medical team. But Bobby insists they not risk exposing anyone else to the virus. Athena continues to plead with Bobby and tries to find a solution to save his life. As they go back and forth with one another, he insists she leave the room before he collapses to his death.

“9-1-1” April 17, 2025 epsiode. Disney/Christopher Willard

“I’ve heard that many fans are upset by this loss and they have a right to be. It is a loss,” Krause said in a statement to Variety on Thursday, April 17.

“That said, it was more than a bold creative choice on a bold show. Bobby Nash was written in sacrifice and he was built for this. First responders risk their lives on the job so that others can see another day. His story arc honors them.”

“We at ‘9-1-1’ salute all the incredible men and women who do these dangerous jobs and strive to keep us safe. Our show is incredibly difficult to make at times with long hours, challenging stunts and elaborate disasters. We couldn’t do it without each other,” he concluded.

Oliver Stark in ‘9-1-1’. ABC

The next episode will show Station 118 mourning the loss of their captain. In a teaser for the upcoming Thursday, May 1 episode, the crew members are shown grappling with Bobby’s death.

The teaser shows the group of firefighters carrying his casket, as Athena’s voiceover is heard saying, “I’ve experienced a devastating loss… He’s not supposed to be dead. He just left. He left me.”

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9-1-1 returns on Thursday, May 1, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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