Jennifer Love Hewitt, Joey Graziadei. Disney/Chris Willard(2)
9-1-1’s 100th episode took advantage of its new network by featuring a crossover with ABC’s The Bachelor, wasting no time poking fun at Joey Graziadei’s season 28 journey with tennis balls — and a whole lot of super glue.
The first few minutes of the Thursday, April 4, episode may have been confusing for some viewers who thought they were tuning into a first responder procedural only to see season 28’s Bachelor Joey standing outside the famous Bachelor mansion waiting to meet his contestants.
Joey’s real season, of course, ended last month when he proposed to Kelsey Anderson. Although the two are still very much happily engaged, 9-1-1 brought the fan-favorite leading man back to help celebrate the scripted drama’s major 100-episode milestone — and help them with a hilariously awkward distress call.
As Joey stands in the driveway at 2351 Kanan Rd in Agoura Hills, California alongside real Bachelor host Jesse Palmer, women begin arriving in limos one by one, just like in the reality series. Joey first meets a dental hygienist, followed by a flight attendant who asks him if he can “wing her heart.” Both are named Ashley, by the way, a reference to most seasons having women of the same name. (Joey’s real fiancée was known as Kelsey A. during the majority of the season.)
While some roses stand the test of time, others wilt before the Neil Lane engagement ring can be resized. The Bachelor premiered on ABC in March 2002 with Alex Michel dubbed the world’s most eligible Bachelor. More than 20 women competed for his heart and one of the most successful reality TV franchises was born. […]
“When I found out who the Bachelor was going to be, I had full body chills,” the next woman, podcast producer Angelique, tells the camera. “I want this. America wants this. And he deserves it.”
A fellow tennis pro — Joey’s real-life career — comes next, with tennis balls spilling out the car door as she exits with a racquet in her hands. She lobs a ball Joey’s way, which he catches in his hands effortlessly with a smile.
Just as Jesse appears to ask Joey how he’s feeling, the next contestant arrives. As she hops out of the driver’s seat of the limo — the first red flag something may be awry — she greets Joey enthusiastically. Producers behind the cameras begin to realize that the blonde-haired, white woman in front of them might not actually be “Conchata,” as she claims.
Knowing she’s been exposed, the woman reveals that her real name is Bailey, an esthetician from Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Sharing that she’s been “waiting for this moment” since she was 21 years old, she then superglues herself to the driveway in an attempt to prove she’s there for the “right reasons” — the most common phrase muttered by Bachelor contestants over the years. Jesse immediately calls 9-1-1 for help, receiving Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) on the other end.
The 118 arrives to the chaos shortly after. From there, hijinks ensue — secret Bachelor fan Chimney (Kenny Choi) geeks out over finding out who the next Bachelor will be, Buck (Oliver Stark) and Eddie (Ryan Guzman) get hit on by the women at the mansion, Bailey has to be jackhammered out of her sticky situation and the real Conchata is found passed out from being dosed with chloroform.
Joey, however, remains steady and calm, even wiping away Bailey’s tears before she gets whisked away in an ambulance, causing the rest of the women to roll their eyes in jealousy.
As sympathetic as he is, though, it’s clearly not a love match. “Will you come visit me in the hospital?” Bailey says from a stretcher, to which Joey replies, “Do I have to?” Host Jesse quickly whispers, “I wouldn’t.”
The crossover is a perfect homage to ABC after the network saved 9-1-1 up following its cancelation at Fox last year. Credit for the concept goes to Hewitt, 45, who showrunner Tim Minear revealed pitched him the idea.
“The whole crossover episode came about because Jennifer Love Hewitt called me after she went to one of the finales of The Bachelor,” Minear, 60, told Entertainment Weekly in an interview published on Saturday, March 30. “She’s a huge fan of The Bachelor and she said, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if the 118 responded to a call at the Bachelor mansion?’”
Hewitt is, in fact, a big fan of the franchise, as she notably attended the Golden Bachelor “After the Final Rose” special in December 2023. According to Minear, it wasn’t long before he contacted ABC to discuss the concept further.
ABC/YouTube There isn’t an emergency too big or too small for 9-1-1’s Station 118 to handle — including a network change. While the Los Angeles-based firefighter series made its debut in 2018 on FOX, season 7 will mark a new era for 9-1-1 on its new network: ABC. Viewers, however, are in for the same […]
“I reached out to ABC and they reached out to the Bachelor people and we got onto a Zoom,” he explained. “We just started talking about what the possibilities were. The Bachelor people were unbelievably supportive and helpful. They volunteered to show us the ropes about how they make the show and then when we shot it.”
He continued, “We actually brought in the Bachelor crew to shoot the first part of that case, so that it really was The Bachelor. And then we go into 9-1-1 world when they have to call 9-1-1. So that’s how it came about. It just seemed like a great idea.”
9-1-1 airs on ABC Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET.
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