9-1-1: Nashville Casts Grey’s Anatomy Star As Major Character

Deadline reports that Jessica Capshaw has joined 9-1-1: Nashville. Capshaw, best known for her role as Dr. Arizona Robbins on Grey's Anatomy, will play the wife of Chris O'Donnell's character and the mother of a lead character named Ryan. That role has yet to be cast.

What Capshaw's Casting Means For 9-1-1: Nashville

Family Is A Major Focus, As The Spinoff Leans On Familiar Stars

Capshaw, recurring recently on the Hulu young adult drama Tell Me Lies, is only the second actor announced for the 20th Television and Ryan Murphy Television production. She follows O'Donnell, who wrapped a 14-season run on NCIS: Los Angeles as Agent Callen. O'Donnell's 9-1-1: Nashville character, Captain Don Sharpe, is described as a rugged fire captain and rodeo rider. Though he is a devoted husband and family man, the fire captain has secrets.

Capshaw is another television vet, dating back to her time on the Emmy-winning David E. Kelley legal drama The Practice in the early 2000s and her nine-season run as Dr. Robbins on Grey's Anatomy. She also recently reprised the role of Dr. Robbins for a guest appearance in season 20 of the seminal medical drama. Her film credits include Minority Report and the 2001 horror film Valentine, as well as the 2022 drama Dear Zoe.

9-1-1: Nashville, unlike the original, is closer to the 9-1-1: Lone Star spinoff in prioritizing family dynamics. Although the original features family members and spouses of the main characters in prominent recurring roles, it is arguably more centered on the found family that the 118 developed over the years. Lone Star, meanwhile, put the Strand family at its center.

Our Take On The 9-1-1: Nashville Castings

It's An Exciting Addition

The casting of a network television show isn't usually so intriguing. But because of Murphy's long history as a star creator and Minear's veteran status as a TV writer, most prominently with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer spinoff Angel, it's interesting to track the names that they might lean on to populate the cast of the spinoff. 9-1-1 season 9 is confirmed. But, just in terms of pure numbers, the hit show is closer to the end than the beginning. The ensemble of the new series is key to getting attention, and it'll likely be a mix of veterans like Capshaw and O'Donnell and relative newcomers.