Why Was Bobby Killed Off of 9-1-1? Inside the Show’s Controversial Twist That Shocked Fans

9-1-1 is gearing up for its first season without the legendary Captain Bobby Nash, who was portrayed by Peter Krause.

After eight seasons on the hit procedural drama, Captain Bobby shocked fans when he died at the end of season 8. During the heartwrenching episode, Bobby sacrificed his own life to save Howard “Chimney” Han (Kenneth Choi) by giving him the only antidote for a fatal virus.

Bobby’s death sent shockwaves throughout the 9-1-1 fan community, but Angela Bassett — who plays a police sergeant who is also Bobby’s wife — encouraged people to continue watching and hanging onto hope.

“I’m in mourning. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. It wasn’t my choice. I don’t know,” she told PEOPLE at the 2025 Met Gala in May. “Keep hope alive. Maybe he’ll return in my dreams, you know, my memories.”

Although Bobby will no longer appear in 9-1-1, which premieres its ninth season on Oct. 9, he will be remembered by the remaining Los Angeles first responders at Station 118 — including characters played by Jennifer Love Hewitt, Aisha Hinds, Ryan Guzman and Oliver Stark.

Here’s everything to know about why Captain Bobby Nash left 9-1-1 and what Peter Krause is doing after parting ways with the show.

How did Captain Bobby die on 9-1-1?

Captain Bobby Nash died after he contracted a lethal strain of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever in a biolab explosion. Bobby was stuck in the lab alongside Chimney, who was the first person to be exposed to the fatal virus.

However, Bobby — who was wearing a protective suit — found an antidote in the lab and gave it to Chimney to save his life.

Both Bobby and Chimney initially appeared to be safe when other first responders found them, but that suddenly changed when Bobby admitted that he could not leave the contaminated biolab. Bobby then revealed that his suit had broken during the mission, and he had chosen to save Chimney instead of himself.

Although the first responders urge Bobby to let a medical team treat him, he knows the odds of exposing others are too high, so he insists on staying. He asks to see Buck (Stark) and his wife, Athena (Bassett), and says a tearful goodbye before he dies from the virus behind the glass.

Who will replace Bobby as captain?

At the end of season 8, there was no new captain at Station 118 to replace Bobby. Ahead of the dramatic season finale in May, Stark explained to PEOPLE that the show purposely planned on not naming Bobby’s replacement in the same season of his death.

“The chair will be empty come the end of the season,” Stark told PEOPLE. “Which I think is wise because it gives some time to let the dust settle and let the chips land where they may, and you know, let these people grieve, and then we can start to see what the future will look like.”

However, when asked about who could possibly follow in Bobby’s steps, he suggested that Chimney or Henrietta “Hen” Wilson (Hinds) would be suitable. (Stark shared his opinion before the season finale revealed that Hen turned down the offer as captain.)

“I think Chimney would be the next choice, experience wise, skill wise, leadership ability wise, and just overall good person wise,” he said. “If not Hen, my vote goes to Chimney.”

Viewers will learn more about Bobby’s replacement in the season 9 premiere of 9-1-1 on Oct. 9.

How will 9-1-1 pay tribute to Bobby in season 9?

Since Bobby’s death took place with three episodes remaining, several of the characters had already started to grieve before the season ended. Athena honored her late husband by investigating one of his cases that he never solved, while Chimney and Hen both attempted to comfort her.

The Los Angeles Fire Department, Police Department and other first responders said their goodbyes to Bobby at his funeral before he was laid to rest. In the season finale, Chimney and Maddie (Love Hewitt) welcomed their son and honored Bobby by naming him Robert.

The tributes to Bobby seem to continue throughout season 9. Photos from the premiere episode show the 118 honoring Bobby’s legacy by naming Station 118 after him.

“Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Robert. W. Nash Memorial Station 118,” the plaque reads. “Gave his life while on duty proudly serving the citizens of Los Angeles.”

Why did Peter Krause leave 9-1-1?

9-1-1 decided to kill off Krause’s character for “entirely creative” decisions, showrunner Tim Minear told Variety in April 2025.

“I had to convince everybody about this,” Minear said at the time. “The network was not like, ‘Yeah, get rid of him, it’ll save us money.’ It was nothing like that. I had to pitch this at the highest levels and just walk through the whole story and try to infect them — funny choice of words, given the storyline — because, as I pitched it, you could understand, as a writer, how suddenly the whole world felt more alive.”

Minear explained that while the show is great for showing how all the characters tackle seemingly impossible, life-threatening tasks, he wanted to show the “actual stakes” of the job, so “someone’s got to die.”

“I think it needed to be Bobby for a lot of reasons,” Minear shared. “The first reason is that it made sense. It didn’t feel arbitrary, because if you track the tragic arc of his character, of where he started, and how he came to LA looking for atonement, it just makes a kind of tragic sense for his character in a way it wouldn’t for another character. But also, I just didn’t want to go small. Not that any of the characters are small, but Bobby’s death affects every single character’s story in a way that really no other character death would.”

Krause has also spoken about his departure from 9-1-1 and reiterated Minear’s statements that it was a “creative choice.”

“I’ve heard that many fans are upset by this loss and they have a right to be. It is a loss,” he said in a statement after his character’s death. “That said, it was more than a bold creative choice on a bold show. Bobby Nash was written in sacrifice and he was built for this.”

He added, “First responders risk their lives on the job so that others can see another day. His story arc honors them. We at 9-1-1 salute all the incredible men and women who do these dangerous jobs and strive to keep us safe. Our show is incredibly difficult to make at times with long hours, challenging stunts and elaborate disasters. We couldn’t do it without each other.”

Krause thanked all of the show’s creative team members and gave a special shout-out to Bassett for her “strength and her sweetness.”

What is Peter Krause doing now?

After leaving 9-1-1, Krause spoke about his shocking departure in various interviews and then took a step out of the spotlight. He does not appear to have active social media accounts, but he made a rare appearance on Instagram when Choi posted a video of him juggling.

“Peter Krause Sighting… he sends his ❤️,” Choi captioned the video in July.

As of October 2025, Krause, who has been acting since the 1990s, doesn’t appear to have any upcoming projects in the works, per his IMDb. However, he and Bassett have both served as executive producers on 9-1-1 since its premiere in 2018, and he has not announced any plans to step down from the role.

When it comes to his personal life, Krause appears to be single after ending his relationship with fellow actress Lauren Graham in 2021 after 11 years together. He is a father to one son, Roman, whom he shares with ex-girlfriend Christine King.