Jennifer Love Hewitt Returning to 9-1-1 After Maternity Leave

Maddie is ready to reunite with Chimney and her baby! Or well, Jennifer Love Hewitt is at least.

Hewitt had to exit Fox’s 9-1-1, after three years on the show, to take maternity leave back in October—leading to an abrupt exit of her character, Maddie Buckley. But in a recent interview, the 43-year-old actress revealed that she is back and ready to give fans the answers they’ve been longing for. 

“The way Maddie left was very extreme—and the way that I was feeling when I left was very extreme because I was very pregnant,” Hewitt told Entertainment Weekly. “I think the audience has a lot of questions. And I feel good about the fact that all of them will be answered on [March 28].”

Earlier in season five, Maddie Buckley (Hewitt) dropped off her infant daughter at the 118 fire station and left town.

“It felt weird to be gone so long. So, I was super excited to get to come back,” Hewitt continued. “Definitely weird coming back to work with a five-month-old—especially the work that I do on the show, which is some of the heavier stuff—but it was really exciting. I was excited to come back and tell Maddie’s story and answer a lot of questions for people.”