For six years actor Grey Damon has been put through the wringer on ABC's hit show Station 19 as firefighter Jack Gibson. After several near-death experiences, to the discovery of a previously unknown biological family out in the world, fans have been calling for Jack to finally catch a break.
But this is the world of Shonda Rhimes (Grey's Anatomy, Scandal) and in truly dramatic fashion the season six finale ended with Jack, once again, on the brink of death after collapsing following an explosion at the Firefighter's Ball. The intense scenes saw the firehouse contain a fire that had broken out in the event space's kitchen, and as others continued on dancing and enjoying themselves, Jack was racing to get his car keys to drive a pregnant server who had gone into labor to the hospital.
As Lieutenant Andy Herrara (Jaina Lee Ortiz) continued to explore the damage caused, she realized that the roof above her was cracking - and it was the floor of the ballroom. Chief Natasha Ross and Deputy Chief of Operations Michael Dixon (Pat Healy) were among those caught up in the damage, but Jack appeared fine after hitting his head on the floor.
He helped the crew deliver the baby, and save others from the rubble, but in the closing seconds, he lost his balance and collapsed in the arms of his friend and firefighter Travis Montgomery (Jay Hayden).
MORE: Who is Station 19 star Danielle Savre's partner? All the details
"I need them to stop putting Jack in these precarious positions," jokes Grey as he talks to HELLO! for our Spotlight cover. "'Why do you guys keep trying to kill me?' I ask,and they're like, 'Oh because we love Jack,' and I don't understand what that means."
Illinois native Grey – who calls himself an "artistic adventurer" – has been starring as Jack for six seasons, and here he talks about the fate of Jack and Station 19 after the explosion, falling in love with acting, and why the show will be 'fun' with Andy Herrara as Captain.
With the writers' strike, it's unclear when we're going to discover his fate, but if he survives, how do you think this would change Jack?
Grey: What's cool about Jack is his ability to change, and in such profound ways, and always in the right ways. Anything he's been through, which is almost dying every season, has definitely changed him.
But if he dies, well, the firehouse will probably have less conflict! But I also think Jack is a really nice voice of reason. He's always a consistent, warm place that people could turn to, so they would be missing that.
If Jack survives, what would you like to see more of for him in season seven?
Grey: It's really interesting to see the response to Jack's past and his upbringing. People who were foster kids, or kids who've dealt with horrible abuses, persevere. It would be really interesting to see how Jack overcomes these [challenges] in a way that is really profoundly significant in how he responds to the world.
Does he eventually develop some sort of system for monitoring foster homes to make sure kids [stay safe]? Something like what he did for Dean with the memorial clinic, but for foster kids, because it can be a very heavy, tricky situation.
What have been your thoughts on Jack's trajectory this season?
Grey: In season three, he talked about how he had found his zen zone, and what's weird is how he's more in that zone now three years later. He doesn't want to be a Captain anymore, and he's remembering how wonderful it is to actually do his job and not to bark orders or deal with politics.
Do you see him wanting to be a Captain later in his future?
Grey: It was an important thing to him to define who he was and to show his progress in life, to show, This is where I came from, but this is where I am now. But through everything that has happened, with the death of Dean and developing the clinic, he's started seeing that this is not how he necessarily needs to define himself.
So, it could go either way but at this point, if it happens it's more about an honor and duty, than This is how great I am, and that's a really beautiful growth that we're seeing.
Andy is named Captain in the finale, do you think Jack would be supportive?
Grey: Yeah, I think he would be like, We got there, finally. The show is going to be so fun once Andy's Captain, but I love that it took until now and there were these decent reasons why it took so long:, it was the politics.
But I think it's going to be kind of amazing storytelling with how she got to this point, and her relationship with Chief Natasha Ross, and that dichotomy and it will be so interesting.
When did you first fall in love with acting?
Grey: In the beginning, I wanted to be a cartoonist and draw comic books, I enjoyed storyboarding, and I had an interest in film and I started in background work and I did not like how I was being treated; once I was talking to one of our our wranglers as they call them – which says so much already – and I told them was auditioning for a show and both times they said, "Oh, you're not gonna get it," and I got it both times, and it is so interesting to see the aggressive shift in how they treat you.
Then I got a wonderful manager and I got lucky, I really fell in love with it.
After six years on Station 19, do you still feel like you're getting good storytelling?
Grey: Yeah, for sure. I am somebody who likes to try and be part of new things so that I feel like I'm growing and experiencing something, and that's still happening with Station 19.
You're an artist, actor, writer Where do you find your inspirations?
Grey: It's always in the search for individuality, or trying to define yourself in a way that isn't so convoluted and pulled from everything else. I always try to do it in a way where it wants to be what it wants to be itself, and not what I decide it is.
You are visiting Milan and Paris for fan conventions. How do you prepare the intensity of these?
Grey: I have no idea. When I worked on ABC Family, we did a few of these but even then I didn't know what I was doing, and literally, I didn't understand what we were doing.
But I do try to show up and truly experience it, and be present. You meet so many cool people with such passion for these things that you were working on for nine months.
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