9-1-1 Star Reacts To Shocking Decision In Midseason Premiere And Teases Part 2: “Are They Going To Forgive Me For This?”

Warning! Spoilers for 9-1-1 season 8, episode 9!

​Jennifer Love-Hewitt discussed her character Maddie Buckley's shocking decision in the highly-anticipated midseason premiere of 9-1-1. In the episode titled "Sob Stories," Maddie receives a distressing 9-1-1 call from a man named John, who reveals he has kidnapped a young girl named Jayna. As the situation escalates, Maddie empathizes with the caller, even drawing from her own experiences with postpartum depression, in an attempt to ensure Jayna's safety. 9-1-1 season 8, episode 9, culminates in a tense moral dilemma for the first responder. ​

In an interview with TV Line, Love-Hewitt shares her thoughts on Maddie's convincing the kidnapper to shoot himself. Although she seems sympathetic, Maddie subtly guides him toward using the gun on himself, framing it as the only way to silence the monster within him. Love-Hewitt is worried if viewers will forgive her character, but believes they ultimately will. Read what she had to say below:

I’m game for going crazy and doing all the things, but I never want to compromise Maddie’s goodness. This is a moment where I feel like you could go, ‘Oh, that’s not who I want her to be.'

I think fans will forgive Maddie for it once they see [next week’s episode] and all that she’s put through, but this was definitely the first time playing Maddie where I was like, ‘Oh gosh, are they going to forgive me for this?’ Because it’s a crazy thing to do, but I really do think that in that moment it’s all she can do to save other people. That’s how I wrapped my head around it.

What This Means For 9-1-1

Maddie Makes Her Darkest Choice Yet

Throughout the 9-1-1 season 8 episode, Maddie was forced into a psychological battle with the kidnapper, who repeatedly called her in tears. The caller admitted he didn’t "want" to keep harming children but felt powerless to stop himself. Their exchanges remained deeply unsettling, but the tension reached a breaking point when he mentioned Maddie’s daughter, Jee-Yun. In that moment, Maddie made the pivotal decision to manipulate him into turning the gun on himself—an action by the first responder that, whether intentional or not, led to his death.

Maddie’s role in the kidnapper’s demise creates a murky moral dilemma, one that could have lasting repercussions on her psyche. In a review of 9-1-1 season 8, episode 9, Screen Rant's Abdullah Al-Ghamdi noted the episode raises the question "whether people with the impulse to do evil acts should be treated with a measure of kindness so long as they fight to keep those impulses in check." But just as the dust settles, Maddie faces an even greater danger. The episode ends on a cliffhanger as Maddie, now pregnant, is kidnapped by Detective Amber Brayburn—played by Suits alum Abigail Spencer.

Our Take On Maddie's Shocking Decision In 9-1-1

She Did What She Felt Was Right

Maddie’s decision to manipulate the kidnapper into ending his own life makes it one of 9-1-1’s most morally complex episodes yet. While her actions were driven by a desperate need to protect an innocent child—and, more personally, Jee-Yun—the weight of that choice is sure to haunt her. With the shocking twist of her own kidnapping, Maddie now faces a new nightmare, proving that 9-1-1 isn’t pulling any punches in its return. As "Voices" approaches, the real question is: how far will Maddie go to survive this time?