After FOX’s unwarranted Season 7 drop of 9-1-1, ABC swooped in and saved it!
But how many characters will be coming back for the new Season?
Stay tuned!
After six seasons and five years of mysteries, action-packed sequences, breaking and building personal relationships, and gut-wrenching losses, we were unsure of the arrival of a seventh season, given that FOX had decided to drop the series following budgetary crunches. However, fate backed our prayers and let ABC grip the reigns for Season 7! This heroic move befuddled the viewers and shot up their anticipation radars for the arrival of 9-1-1 Season 7. Fast forward to September, and viewers are still awaiting confirmation regarding the future of 9-1-1 amidst uncertain situations inflicted by the ongoing SAG AFTRA strikes.
Moving straight to the characters who won’t be returning this season, we have some unfortunate news for you.
Rockmond Dunbar Won’t Be Coming Back In Season 7 of 9-1-1
After a four-season successful run, Rockmond Dunbar’s character Michael Grant was suddenly written off from the story and it has been confirmed that he will not be making an appearance this season or any season that follows. We finally know why.
Deadline reports the reason for Dunbar’s abrupt exit and it is nothing like you would have imagined. Dunbar’s departure stems from the new COVID protocols on the show, produced by Disney TV Studios’ 20th Television, which require all actors to be vaccinated. According to Deadline reports, Dunbar is not believed to be an anti-vaxxer but declined to comply with the COVID-19 vaccine mandate based on the grounds he presented, which led to his exit from 9-1-1.
Making a statement to Deadline, Dunbar confirms this story by saying,
“I applied for religious and medical accommodations pursuant to the law and unfortunately was denied by my employer,” he elucidated. “My sincerely held beliefs and private medical history are very intimate and personal aspects of my life that I do not publicly discuss and have no desire to start now. I’ve been an actor in this business for 30 years, but my greatest roles are as a husband and father to our 4 small children. As a man that walks in faith, I look forward to what the future holds.” Dunbar continued in his statement, “I have enjoyed the last 5 seasons with this wonderful cast and crew and will cherish the time I’ve been blessed to spend with this series and wish everyone involved nothing but the best.”
To this, a spokesman for 20th Television said to Deadline, “We take the health and safety of all of our employees very seriously, and have implemented a mandatory vaccination confirmation process for those working in Zone A on our productions. In order to ensure a safer workplace for all, Zone A personnel who do not confirm their vaccination status and do not meet the criteria for exemption will not be eligible to work.”
So it seems like this rift will never be bridged leading us to never see Grant on our screens again. Such a shame.
Apart from Dunbar, John Harlan Kim’s Albert Han will only be a guest in season 7 of 9-1-1 as confirmed by insider sources to Screen Rant. Apart from this, the following characters will be returning to reprise their roles for Season 7:
- Angela Bassett as Athena Grant
- Peter Krause as Bobby Nash
- Jennifer Love Hewitt as Maddie Buckley
- Oliver Stark as Evan Buckley
- Aisha Hinds as Henrietta Wilson
- Kenneth Choi as Howard Han
- Ryan Guzman as Edmundo Diaz
- Corinne Massiah as May Grant
- Marcanthonee Jon Reis as Harry Grant
- Gavin McHugh as Christopher Diaz
9-1-1 is produced by 20th Television in association with Ryan Murphy Television and Brad Falchuk Teley-Vision. Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Tim Minear are the creators, executive producers, and writers of the series. Bradley Buecker is an executive producer and director of the series. Alexis Martin Woodall, Angela Bassett, Peter Krause, John J. Gray, Kristen Reidel, and Juan Carlos Coto also serve as executive producers. Some of which are subject to change with the ABC network.
9-1-1 Season 7 Release Date: When Can We Expect Its Arrival?
To think that 9-1-1 Season 7 would be canceled just for the strike situation would be treason because every competitor network, including ABC, has figured out a way to work around the inevitability of the double strike situation. The situation for a fall 2023 release seems bleak. However, we can make a calculated guess on an expected date for the release of 9-1-1 Season 7, taking into account the lingering strike situation. In a situation where negotiations are met within the next two months or so, we can expect production to begin by the end of this year.
Since its previously anticipated fall 2023 release did not make the cut due to the WGA and SAG AFTRA strikes, 2023 does not seem like a favourable year for its release especially given that ABC and all its competing networks have pushed back their fall 2023 releases to a mid-2024 season release. Now that the WGA strike is over, at least the scripts for the new season can be covered.
While SAG AFTRA is still striking it out with the AMPTP over artist rights, it might come to an end soon following the WGA’s chain reaction and a desire for the production houses to resume their filming and work lest they lose sufficient funds over a strike. So, hold your horses because an update regarding filming for the new season is underway. All in all, if the SAG AFTRA strikes end within the next few weeks, we can expect Season 7 to return between March and April 2024.
Where Can I Watch 9-1-1 Season 1-7?
In normal events, an 18-20 episode count has been maintained over the past few Seasons under FOX. However, with the ongoing strikes pushing back the mid-2024 schedule continuously to its brink, the production time window to prepare for Season 7 is narrowing with every passing month. If the strike continues till the end of 2023 and the initiation of production is shifted to 2024, it is safe to assume a smaller season with around 15 episodes. At this time, it is merely guesswork as no official statements have been released by the ABC network regarding the same. So stay tuned!
All the episodes of 9-1-1 are currently available to stream on Fox and Hulu, which is ideal for many international viewers. Additionally, you can currently watch 9-1-1 on FuboTV or Hulu Plus. It can also be rented or purchased on iTunes, Google Play, Apple TV+, Amazon Instant Video, and Vudu. All of the seasons are available to view on the aforementioned digital streaming sites with a membership plan or for free in select locations. Hence, we would advise fans to be patient while waiting for these updates, which will be issued in the near future, and binge-watch the show to recall all the events.
We want to hear from you regarding the possible trajectories the new season can explore. Use the comment section below to write down your guesses.
More Series Like 9-1-1 That You Can Bingewatch:
- Station 19 (Seasons 1-6) on Amazon Prime
- Chicago Med (Seasons 1-8) on NBC
- 9-1-1 Lone Star (Seasons 1-4) on Prime Video
Stay tuned to Web News Observer for more updates this this.