Crossovers are common in shows set in the same universe. The One Chicago shows recently staged a massive crossover after an explosion rocked the city’s foundations. However, a common sentiment among creatives behind various shows is that crossovers are an enormous undertaking that requires many things to align if success is to be guaranteed. This is why 9-1-1 and 9-1-1: Lone Star had one crossover during the latter’s five-season run. 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 2, Episode 3, “Hold the Line,” “was so difficult logistically because of financial issues with actors, and we were stealing the actors from each other’s productions that we kind of cooled on doing it for a lot,” co-showrunner Rashad Raisani told TV Insider. But that doesn’t mean they did not throw out ideas for a crossover if the chance presented itself. Raisani teased one such idea, saying:
“One was to have an L.A.-based emergency where the 126 would’ve shown up in support of the L.A. cast because we’d already done one where they’d come to help us. And the second thing, which I always wanted to do, there’s this thing called the International Firefighting Games where firefighters from all over the world send their best to do almost like an Olympics or a Squid Games, whatever you want to call it, of firefighting competitions.
“And I always thought it would’ve been really fun to send some of the 126 and have them meet up with some of the 118 from L.A. and then have a real emergency happen while they were doing that fun thing and see them all work together.”
The first and only crossover in the shows happened in the spinoff, as the LA crew showed up to support the 126 during a wildfire emergency. Buck (Oliver Stark), Eddie (Ryan Guzman), and Hen (Aisha Hinds) arrive during a particularly dangerous wildfire that threatens to consume the city. Rob Lowe also revealed plans to send Owen to LA for an emergency. “There was one where we were going to have Owen coming to Los Angeles and interacting with Angela [Bassett] and the group at the mothership. We had a whole thing for that never came to fruition that would’ve been really fun and really exciting,” he said. Apart from the major crossover, a mini crossover happened, with Athena appearing in an episode of 9-1-1: Lone Star. There have also been minor references throughout the years.
The chances of another crossover are slim to none, given that 9-1-1: Lone Star just ended, but its characters might appear in the flagship series or future spinoffs. Watch new episodes of 9-1-1 on ABC and stream past episodes on Hulu.
