‘Chicago Fire’: Hanako Greensmith and Jocelyn Hudon Break Down Violet and Novak’s ‘Never-Ending Fear’ During Hostage Situation (Exclusive)

Tonight’s new Chicago Fire was an intense one for everyone’s favorite paramedics, and Hanako Greensmith and Jocelyn Hudon spoke to PopCulture.com all about it.

In “Instinct,” Violet and Novak were taken hostage by a building super who was holding a pregnant woman hostage.

The episode saw the duo having to rely on instincts to save themselves and the woman, Sarah. At the same time, Brandon Larracuente’s Vasquez was trying to find them after realizing something was wrong. It was a roller coaster of an episode, and even though it included only three main characters, there was definitely enough going on. And Greensmith and Hudon broke it down with PopCulture. (Interview has been edited for length and clarity.)

PopCulture: The episode starts with the two of them doing a class for the paramedic joint duty program. It’s been really entertaining and interesting seeing them kick-start this program and seeing them interacting with other firefighters. What will we see from the storyline in future episodes?

Hanako Greensmith: I think the Joint Duty Program has been a wonderful way for these two characters to connect and bond and create something outside of a romantic hemisphere. But as far as this season goes, I think it’s just one of those things that bolsters both the seniority that they experience in the field, and it’s hopefully something that we’ll keep touching upon as the series continues.

Jocelyn Hudon: I would love to see just everyone in the firehouse go through the joint duty program. The weirdest combinations. I would love for everyone to be paired up in the joint duty program.

Greensmith: I would love to see that. I would love to see what grades each of them would get for sure. I mean, Capp surprisingly got an A+, so you never know.

Hudon: Force Severide to, “Carry this, bro.”

Greensmith: He has the best kerlix wrap you’ve ever seen. Like why?

PC: Violet and Novak’s relationship seems to be a little tense after Violet told Novak the truth about Vasquez, and Novak brought up trust and how she didn’t like that Violet kept things from her. How has it been navigating this tension between them, even if it is subtle, and working alongside Brandon amidst this sort of love triangle between them all?

Greensmith: I think this episode needed to happen because I think it hopefully solidifies for the audience what’s really most important to these characters. I don’t think we’re gonna let the attentions of a man really be the thing that deters us from connecting to one another. But at the same time, I think it’s an important way for us to showcase how Vasquez is a committed and caring person as well. I mean, he did save our lives at the end of the day, and I think that brings about maybe more complications to this dynamic, but also a really important way to feature his character. And I think I speak for both of us when I say we love Brandon, and he’s a wonderful person and a great addition to the show.

Hudon: Yeah, I agree with showcasing his character in a different way. I think it was a really cool way of just reorganizing the priorities of the firehouse. I think when you’re put into a situation like that, you’re like, “Never mind. Never mind. I trust her. Whatever. Boys, cool. We’re partners. I definitely trust you. Let’s survive together. The end.” And then having Vasquez is great. He’s part of the firehouse, and we’ll see what happens.

PC: The situation that Violet and Novak find themselves in is when someone asks them for help, believing that his wife is in labor, but they’re ultimately taken hostage. It’s turned out that a building super has taken a pregnant tenant hostage. What was your favorite part about the episode? Because it never seemed to slow down one bit the entire time.

Hudon: The end. The baby was also so good. I love doing the fight. It was so much fun to just kick Garrett [Coffey] and scramble for the gun. It was so fun. I love the scrambling. I love the way they filmed it, too, through the stairs. It’s so cool. And then just working together, like I said before. We’re literally in a bunker. The whole crew, everyone, is in this bunker that they created. So we’re all kinda curled for, like, eight days on the floor. It was really fun just to switch it up and do something so unique and create an amazing episode together.

Greensmith: Totally. Retweet all of the above.

PC: Between the woman, Sarah, being in active labor, and Ryan, the building super, wanting to move everyone, there is so much going on, especially after he shoots the building manager. Violet and Novak are trying to save everyone, including themselves. What do you think was going through their minds throughout the entire situation, especially when they were split up at one point?

Greensmith: I mean, I think at that point, you’re in survival in every context of the word. And I almost found it to be a relief in some capacity where you’re like, “Here’s one thing that I know how to do that I can focus on that I can work on. Novak’s got that over there. She knows how to do that. I trust all of her capabilities and her as a person.” So let’s just get these two things done.

And it’s like relief, almost from this never-ending fear of “Am I about to get shot? I have no idea.” So I think, weirdly, that was one of my favorite parts because it was like it actually relieved some of the strange pressure of “Am I gonna live through this?”

Hudon: I think also just character-wise, looking at each other and being like, “Alright. When are we gonna take them out? I know we can. Tell me when.” The whole time, Novak’s like, “Girl, when? When’s it happening? Let me know. You blink. Let’s go.” So I think that was like, “We could take them. We both can. We gotta get this baby out, and then it’s showtime.” But I think that was cool, just waiting for the perfect moment to act was a lot of fun to portray. And that was a great part of the script, too.

PC: Speaking of, they do eventually come up with a plan to take Ryan down, and it works. And they’re ultimately saved thanks to Vasquez’s instincts. What they went through is pretty harrowing. Will this affect them at all moving forward?

Greensmith: I mean, I think it definitely changes an element between the three of them. I think it obviously solidifies a lot of the trust and sacred union between Novak and Violet. But I also think, as far as moving forward, I think it does a really good job actually of showcasing, like, this is just one of the risks that come with being a first responder, and it’s one of the things that they take in their stride. And I think it’s just an opportunity to make them better at what they already do. So I don’t know if you’ll see them really process it so much together when it’s something that they know they signed up for.

Hudon: We hear all the time from the real first responders at work, they go through these horrible situations and scary, dangerous situations, and then they do it again and again every day, and they go back to work the next day. So that’s kind of what we’re portraying.

New episodes of Chicago Fire air on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC, streaming the next day on Peacock.