On ABC's 9-1-1, no-one ever really gets a moment to be happy – just ask Kenneth Choi, who has been begging showrunner Tim Minear for his character, Howard 'Chimney' Han, to receive some "semblance of happiness" for years.
It's not coming – and it probably never will, even with Chim's upcoming wedding to Maddie Buckley (Jennifer Love Hewitt), which Kenneth tells HELLO! will be "fraught".
© Justin Stephens"It's never all easy for those two. I would love for them to be happy and enjoy married life, but I'm on 9-1-1 – it's never going to happen," said Kenneth.
"Tim once said, 'If you guys are happy, then you're off the show,' because there's no point if there's no drama, but I'd like to see some semblance of happiness just even if it's for one full episode."
Maddie and Chim's relationship has been through a lot
"There's no point if there is no drama" may as well be 9-1-1's motto at this point, and althouugh season seven episode six,' There Goes The Groom', has been billed as a comedy jape a la The Hangover, it takes a turn fans may not be expecting.
"After years of anticipation, Maddie and Chimney's long-awaited wedding day arrives; when the groom mysteriously vanishes, the 118 races against time to ensure he doesn't miss the most crucial day of his life," the logline reads.
Maddie and Chim have been together since she was introduced in season two, and have been at the center of some of the show's most dramatic moments: Who can forget when Maddie's ex-husband Doug Kendall showed up, befriended Chim, and then kidnapped Maddie before a devastating race to save her?
Maddie's post-partum depression also saw her exit Los Angeles in season five, leaving a heartbroken Chimney behind, before she proposed to him at the end of the season.
© Chris WillardChim is 'always nervous', says Kenneth
Fans can find out how their wedding finally plays out on Thursday May 2 when the show returns from hiatus, but it plays into the character arc we've long seen of Chim, the nervous paramedic, worried about what marriage may mean for his and Maddie's future together.
"Chim is always nervous – he hears one thing and it sets him off and the next thing he hears nothing and it sets him off!" laughed Kenneth art the 9-1-1 premiere party earlier in March 2024.
"There's a lot of parts of Chim that I love and there's some… I just want to smack him in the face. But the writers do a really great job of being consistent with who the characters are, and our showrunner, Tim, came back to us from 9-1-1 Lone Star and we're very excited because he's our North Star."
