Barrett Doss and Jay Hayden Talk Their Favorite Episodes, Stunts, and the Show’s Cancellation

On screen and off, Station 19 Barrett Doss (Victoria “Vic” Hughes) and Jay Hayden (Travis Montgomery) are great friends.

As the series neared airing its final original episodes (the finale airs May 30), in separate interviews, the cast spoke of their surprise at the unexpected cancellation, proudly playing firefighters, of their scenes the most difficult, the most dangerous and favorite, and what is it? as with Montgomery working with a costar who is also a romantic partner (Jaina Lee Ortiz).

What was your reaction when Station 19 was canceled just as the seventh season was starting?

Jay Hayden: I was surprised. We have a really strong fan base and when I took an RV trip across the country with my kids one summer, I learned how many people watch this show, which was really cool. I thought we’d be on the air a little longer, but I guess the small blessing is that at least we had one final season to finish the story because this will be the first show I’ve been on and who had the chance to do that.

Barrett Doss: When I learned Station 19 I wasn’t going into season eight; I was a little devastated to be honest. I think it was my second day of filming this season when they announced it. Carlos Miranda (who plays Theo Ruiz) and I had to shoot the last scene that day and everyone was in such a sad mood, including both of us, the crew and our director Paris Barclay, who had been with us since the beginning. . We really needed to come together. But I realized that we actually had a unique opportunity to end the series knowing that it wasn’t going to move forward and that we might see stories that we hadn’t had a chance to explore over the years. previous seasons. Of course, it’s really sad, but thanks to the fans and Disney and ABC and, obviously, Shondaland and all the work of our crew and our cast and our showrunners, we were able to have seven seasons.

Was it special to play a firefighter?

Hayden: We all gained an appreciation for what these guys do. If I see (a firefighter), for example in a cafe, I try to buy him a coffee because now we kind of know what he does every day, how hard this job is and what the real everyday heroes. But the funny thing is, there have been times when I was at Starbucks picking out a muffin and someone said to me, “Hey, I really appreciate your service, I would like to buy it for you. And I’m like, “I’m not a real firefighter.” I play one but I’m not one. I can’t let you do this. It’s also special when a firefighter gives you a good handshake and tells you they appreciate the way you tell the story and personify their hard work. There’s a bit of mutual respect there and I feel very lucky.

Back : This has always been interesting to me because our show features many female firefighters at the same station and during the same shift. We represented a very diverse firehouse and we wanted to represent women in the fire service responsibly and honestly. For my character, one of the most important things was showing empathy towards the people she helps. That was Vic’s calling: wanting to help people. There was no interest in climbing the ladder or seeking power.

Speaking of diversity, Jay, you’ve played an openly gay firefighter since the beginning of the series. And you’ve kissed several men on the show.

Hayden: It’s a huge honor and blessing to play this character and represent this community. I will miss Travis very much. He was so much fun to play. My parents laughed so much when I told them about the role and they said, “Well, at least your girlfriend won’t mind.” And I said, “That’s right, I guess there won’t be any jealousy.” (Laughs)

So what’s it like to work all day with a classmate you’re dating in real life, especially if you see her in love scenes?

Hayden: It’s a very interesting dynamic. I like working with a loved one because usually we go to work every day and hug the person home, and then we spend eight hours with colleagues. But being able to see someone you really care about and spend time with them throughout the work day, I don’t know if everyone agrees with that, but I love it.

What were some of your physically difficult moments? Station 19? And did you do any risky stunts?

Hayden: When we did Seattle in the fall, we were actually shooting in late summer in Pomona, California with the full fire suits, the oxygen tanks, the garden hoses… doing take after take . There was a heatwave at the time and it was a real nightmare. Because we were sweating so much, it was so hard to keep the water weight off. There’s never enough water that could get into our bodies between takes and it would just flow out of us. But we all looked very thin, because we didn’t have any water weight!

Back : I always loved doing my own stunts and begged our stunt coordinator to let me hang upside down from the top of a ladder between 15 and 20 feet high for a scene (Things We Lost in the Fire by season 5) where Vic is electrocuted. and passed out. And in our 100^th episode (“My Way” from season 7), with Vic and Travis helping to save people stuck in Seattle’s very tall Space Needle exterior elevator, I had to do all that harness work hanging from the ceiling of our stage at overflow. It was great!

Do you each have a favorite scene that you could talk about?

Back : There are three now. The finale includes one of the most moving and important moments of my time Post 19. I won’t say more but the tears were absolutely real when we shot it.

The first scene I loved was towards the end of season 2, (“Always Ready”), when after the death of (her fiancé) Lucas Ripley, Vic is surrounded by her team on top of the fire truck . (Note: This scene was faithfully reproduced in the penultimate episode of the series.) I felt so connected to this cast in that moment. They were so generous.

Then there’s a seven-minute scene with Jay in Season 4 (“Nobody’s Alone”) where we got into a huge fight. This was absolutely one of the most fun scenes to shoot because it was so long and had so many different colors in it. Jay and I came up with a story for an episode dedicated to Vic and Travis’ friendship. I had seen a documentary about people struggling with drug addiction and how when they go into the hospital, they sometimes come out and relapse after an hour or two, and then end up being picked up that same evening. I was wondering what would happen if we saw the team respond to the same person multiple times during the same shift. And it turned into a story about two best friends who struggled with addiction together. And at the same time, we got to see Vic and Travis struggle with the different ways they deal with their addiction to their own grief over the death of Ripley and Travis’ firefighter husband Michael. The scene was silly, dramatic and moving.

Hayden: I remember doing a scene with Vic where we were picking up drug addicts on the street and trying to help them. Then we fought in the aid car and Travis stopped so they could get out. It turned out wonderfully beautiful, sad and hilarious, almost like a play we were putting on on the sidewalk. We rehearsed it in front of the whole team and they applauded at the end.

This was also one of Barrett’s favorite scenes.

Hayden: Is that what she said too? I must say that it will be very hard for me, at the end of this work, not to do scenes with her. She’s just a wonderful actress.

Back : I don’t know what I would have done without Jay over the last seven seasons. He’s like my big brother.

Station 19, series finale, Thursday, May 30, 10/9c, ABC