Advertisement

9-1-1 's Angela Bassett and Peter Krause tease tension between Bobby and Athena as her father stands accused

Angela Bassett teases that tonight's 9-1-1 goes back to her character Athena's "origin story" — showing the crime that inspired her to become a cop, but also how that crime could tear her family apart decades later.

Bassett's Athena and her husband Bobby (Peter Krause) were meant to be on a belated honeymoon, but after her father (Henry G. Sanders) crashed his car into the family home, the couple head to Florida to help fix the house and watch over her dad, who is in a medically induced coma after the accident. Tensions are high with Athena's mom (Beverly Todd), and things only get worse after the body of a young girl who went missing when Athena was in gradeschool is found underneath their home.

In a preview clip exclusive to EW, we see that the stress puts strain on Bobby and Athena as well — with Bobby working to clear his father-in-law's name while Athena appears afraid to dig too deep, worried about what she might find.

For Bobby's role in the conflict, Krause says his fire station captain was perhaps blind to Athena's concerns when he started looking into things.

"I don't think Bobby has any idea that Athena is concerned that there's a very, very real possibility that her father had something to do with this," the actor says. "That's a scary thought, and she doesn't want to even go there."

"The stranger doesn't look like the wolf or the devil. He looks, he's oftentimes someone very familiar to us," Bassett explains. "But the real monkey wrench in this is 'How well do you know your parents?' You know your parents from a certain perspective through the eyes of just complete and utter love, respect, admiration. But then when there's suspicion, how is that shaken? Does that shake that love, that commitment? How far will you go? Will you hide bodies for them?"

9-1-1 airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.

Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.

Related content: