‘All American’: Bre-Z on the Aftermath of Coop Facing One of the ‘Hardest Decisions’ She Had to Make (Exclusive)

Tonight’s episode of All American saw a devastating outcome for one beloved couple, and Bre-Z spoke to PopCulture.com about what the aftermath will look like.

In “Boom I Got Your Boyfriend,” Coop and Patience’s strained relationship continued, and it came to a head. Unfortunately, the end result was not one that fans had been hoping, as Coop had to make a tough decision. Take a look at what Bre-Z had to say. (Interview has been edited for length and clarity).

PopCulture: In the new episode, Coop finds out that the apartment that she and Patience have been on the waitlist for is finally available, and she’s convinced that this could fix their relationship. How do you think Coop’s been handling the whole situation with Patience and the fact that they seem to be drifting apart?

Bre-Z: It’s a matter of comfortability and I think in relationships, we see things that we don’t like. We feel ways that we don’t wanna acknowledge. And those are what keep us stagnant in life and relationships. And I think Coop is doing just that. Like, ‘No, no, no. This is fine. This is what we wanted.’ And kinda thinking that what’s happening is what is meant to happen. ‘Oh, it happens, so we must be meant to be together.’ And I think after a few fork in the roads, after a few uneasy feelings, and after a few just true acknowledgments of how Coop was actually feeling, this is something she was able to walk down and talk through with Professor Strong. Coop finally gets to a point where she’s like, ‘Hey. This is not it. We are going in two different directions, and our life is gonna require different versions of our directions, and our life is gonna require different versions of ourselves.’

So, just being honest with her about that because there is a lot of love there, and there is a lot of respect there as far as the relationship and the time put into the relationship. But I think with that much time invested, you should be even more okay with saying what the truth is for yourself. And hopefully, your partner would respect that. And luckily, Patience did, and she understood. And lo and behold, she felt the same. So, I think it’s a sad episode for our viewers and the fans of the relationship, but I also think there’s a great upside to that in seeing where both of their lives go from here.

PC: Going off of that, after Coop gets a B on her assignment, as you said, she confronts Professor Strong about it and tries to see what she did, and then the two end up talking and drinking. What do you think it meant to Coop to be able to be so open about what’s been going on with her?

Bre-Z: I think the conversation with Coop and Professor Strong was a very mature one. And I think that Brianna stands in a place that Coop admires, not only professionally but personally. And that is a part of Coop’s journey. Coop wants to be able to be more sturdy, if you will, with all the choices she makes in her life. And Brianna, she’s like the light for Coop. And Coop looks at her, and she admires that and was able to get different perspective from Brianna that was able to allow Coop to just take a beat and think truly about what it is you want and ask myself the questions that Brianna was asking me.

So I think the comfortability came because this is someone that Coop admires, not only for her legal mind but just as a woman. I love that she speaks with such certainty. And it is a thing of either it is or it isn’t. We’re not guessing. We have to be sure. This is our real life. So I think that Coop immediately felt a bit of comfort and connection with Brianna immediately, which will ultimately allow her to just be honest and not be afraid of what the outcome will be.

PC: You’ve already talked about this before a little bit, but after Coop admits how she really feels about Patience and she overhears, the two wind up breaking up. What can you tell me about that aftermath and how Coop will handle it?

Bre-Z: I think for Coop, it’ll be, for lack of better words, like a weight lifted. I think it’ll be a weight lifted and Coop will be happy that she made a decision for herself for the first time. And Coop has always made decisions throughout our series based on how everybody else was feeling, whether she was staying in defense of Spencer and sometimes getting in the center of his relationship with Olivia. She’s doing this to make sure they’re okay or she’s doing whatever to make sure Patience is okay.

I think that it’s a weight lifted for her and definitely just something that needed to happen for her personally. Like, ‘You know what? This moment is about you. This is your life. This has nothing to do with how anybody else feels. This is about you.’ So I think now, Coop will soar in knowing that she was able to face one of the hardest decisions she felt she was gonna have to make, which was ending her relationship.

PC: There is a sweet montage of some of their moments throughout the series. What is your favorite Coop and Patience moment or your favorite moment that you’ve shared with Chelsea [Tavares] while filming?

Bre-Z: I would say I’ve seen the montage. And those earlier years, beginnings of the series when we’re in church, and she’s in the choir, I just felt like those years of working, and our characters’ lives were just so innocent. So innocent, so fun, so young. Those were some of my favorite moments, the beginning years of their relationship for me.

PC: At the end of the episode, Amina tells Coop that she should move in with her and her dad. What are you most excited to explore with them now that they’ll be living together?

Bre-Z: I think the next hump for Coop is to bring Amina closer. There is still an underlying question mark surrounding Mo’s death and how that happened, and because I have always been there for Amina and for Preach in terms of raising this girl and just our little family. I think I’m looking forward to just getting into it and kinda getting that over with. And I think the breakup is what kinda fuels me to just be honest in every other area of my life.

New episodes of All American air on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.