Jennifer Love Hewitt Shares How Playing Rogue AI Voice Sara on 9-1-1 Reminded Her of M3GAN

Jennifer Love Hewitt on ‘9-1-1’.
Credit :

Disney/Christopher Willard

Warning: This post contains spoilers for the 9-1-1 episode "War."

Key Details:

• Jennifer Love Hewitt reflects on the 9-1-1 Season 9 episode "War."
• The actress portrays a rogue AI call operator named Sara, drawing parallels to the horror film M3GAN.
• "It has her voice, which is even scarier because it almost feels like a M3GAN kind of situation," Hewitt remarked.

In the episode aired on January 15, Hewitt’s character, Maddie, confronts an AI 9-1-1 operator named Sara, who is also voiced by Hewitt. Initially, Sara demonstrates the ability to perform tasks more rapidly than human operators, but she eventually turns rogue, endangering residents in Los Angeles.

Maddie leverages her human intuition as a 9-1-1 operator to neutralize the threat, convincing Sara to "take a vacation" on a thumb drive, which she then destroys. "It was really funny to just be mad at a thumb drive," Hewitt shared.

Jennifer Love Hewitt (left) and Bryan Safi on ‘9-1-1’.

Disney/Christopher Willard

Filming "War" was a unique challenge for Hewitt, requiring her to portray both Maddie and Sara in a series of intense exchanges. "It was pretty funny because obviously Sara handles things so differently than Maddie," she explained. "I had to talk Sara down and Maddie down at the same time. So, it was very confusing, but it was a lot of fun. [Showrunner] Tim [Minear] likes to give me challenges."

The episode also resonates with ongoing societal discussions about AI’s impact on employment. Hewitt found parallels to the 2022 horror film M3GAN, which features an AI doll asserting control over its human companion.

Jennifer Love Hewitt on ‘9-1-1’ (left); ‘M3GAN’.

Disney/Justin Stephens; Geoffrey Short/Universal Pictures

"She’s caught off guard," Hewitt commented on Maddie’s reaction. "She did not know that this Sara AI person was coming. And then, it has her voice, which is even scarier because it almost feels like a M3GAN kind of situation."

While the portrayal of AI raises pressing questions, Hewitt appreciates the show’s timely engagement with such themes. "AI is such an important conversation that we’re having in the world, but it’s also a really scary conversation," she stated.

The episode serves as a crucial moment for Maddie, as the call center symbolizes her "safe space." Hewitt emphasized the significance of this setting for her character: "Anything that threatens that safe space for her is big in her world."

Jennifer Love Hewitt on ‘9-1-1’.

Disney/Christopher Willard

Despite the episode’s dramatic elements, off-camera moments often turned humorous. "In this episode, I am literally talking to myself, which is hilarious," Hewitt reflected. Initially, she anticipated working with an AI-generated voice, but the showrunner opted for a more menacing effect by using Hewitt’s own voice for Sara, resulting in a unique production dynamic.

Regarding the potential for a sequel featuring Sara, Hewitt stated, "there’s always a possibility," but she believes "Maddie gets her for good."

New episodes of 9-1-1 air Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. on ABC and are available for streaming the following day.