Sorry ‘9-1-1’ fans, it seems the cast doesn’t see Buddie the way you do

Over the past eight seasons, Buck and Eddie have become cornerstones

of 9-1-1. Since Eddie joined 118, what started as a small rivalry between

two of the youngest and hottest firefighters has turned into something much more as the characters grow and develop a deep friendship. This friendship has been interpreted in a variety of ways, with some viewers seeing the characters as romantically involved but not yet knowing they are soul mates. In Season 8, Buck began dating a guy for the first time, which made his vision of Buddie more clear. As viewers hoped and pushed for Eddie to also discover his attraction to men, series stars Oliver Stark and Ryan Guzman have publicly expressed their thoughts on the pair.

“Yeah. Oliver and I are very aware of fandom and how people view characters, and I feel like people will see what they want to see and believe what they want to believe. I’m not always here to say that’s right or wrong. I’m very indifferent to that. I love love, and I said that,” Guzman told TV Guide when asked if he sees Eddie and Buck’s relationship as more than just friends. He echoed sentiments he’s expressed before and agreed with Stark, who told TV Line: “Look, people are going to interpret characters, and they should, regardless of how they want to. I have no doubt that some people will interpret him as being straight while hiding who he really is. I don’t know where that story is going to go.”

Male friendships are rare on TV because of the different natures of competition that arise. With Eddie and Buck, they’ve moved past that and become anchors in each other’s lives. Guzman said that seeing a non-romantic relationship between straight and bisexual male characters is pretty powerful. “For me, I think it’s a beautiful sign, a beautiful opportunity, especially when Buck came out as bisexual, to introduce to the world a straight man and a bisexual man living or being together and being best friends, brothers, without any change, without any awkwardness or weirdness,” the actor said.

But ultimately, some themes in the media arise, whether intentionally or not. Some viewers may see them as romantic visions, while others may not. Stark thinks that’s the beauty of it. “Probably. I think the whole point of creating any kind of entertainment is for the audience to interpret it however they want. So he says, as clearly as he can, in that scene, ‘I’m straight.’ But it’s still open to interpretation, as any form of art should be,” he said.

For now, Buck and Eddie remain great friends who help each other through some of the toughest situations a person could ever need a loved one to be around. Whether that will change is anyone’s guess.

See how their relationship plays out in all-new episodes of 9-1-1 Season 8 on ABC every Thursday. Stream previous episodes on Hulu.