Ronen Rubinstein Of "9-1-1 Lonestar" Goes Over The Hit FOX Procedural Drama

FOX’s #1 drama, "9-1-1," expands its reach to the city of Austin, TX, with its "9-1-1 Lonestar." Nearly 20 years ago, Owen Strand (Rob Lowe) was the lone survivor of his Manhattan firehouse on 9/11. After a similar tragedy happens to a firehouse in Austin, Owen and his troubled firefighter son, T.K. (Ronen Rubinstein), move to Texas. On the surface, Owen is all about big-city style and swagger, but underneath he struggles with a secret that could end his life.

Video Transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

RICKY CAMILLERI: Everyone, what's up? Welcome to "BUILD" at home. I'm Ricky Camilleri. I'm joined right now by Ronen Rubinstein, star-- one of the stars of "9-1-1 Lonestar" on Fox. We're going to talk all about the show. Before we do, as usual, I'd like to throw this out before the interview, which is that kids in need have missed up to 234 million school meals due to the coronavirus closing schools across the country.

If you would like to help, if you would find a way to volunteer or donate money so we can get kids the meals that they need, please go to nokidhungry.org. And you can donate. You can read all about it. Ronen, thank you so much for being here. How are you holding up? You're in Los Angeles. How you holding up out there?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Well, thank you for having me. It's-- you know, it's weird. It's like, it's such a busy city for it's all of a sudden become empty, like on the streets. And anywhere you go, you can sort of feel this like, tension in the air.

And it's definitely-- it's bizarre. It does feel like a ghost town in some areas. I live close to like, Sunset Boulevard. And all Sunset Boulevard is closed. And it's just something that no one has ever seen.

And it's just-- at least, I like to look at the bright side of things. And it does show that people are staying inside and are listening and are trying to really just-- to just ride this out. And that's sort of the only way we're going to slow this down. So I'm glad that that's happening, at least.

RICKY CAMILLERI: How are you-- how are you staying sane while staying home and locking yourself inside?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Oh, man, the first week was weird. The first week was just a lot of stress and a lot of sort of feeling like you can't really do much right now, especially if it's people are suffering. And I have a lot of friends back home in New York who are nurses and are on the front line.

So to talk to them and to hear their stories the first week was just like, it was a bit-- it was a bit much. But then I sort of found a way to like develop like a routine. You know, there's a lot of puzzling been going on, have some really exciting LEGOs coming in that I'm-- it's sort of like I'm sort of reverting back to being a child again and a lot of cooking.

And, yeah, just trying to take as many walks as possible and kind of find areas that are sort of emptyish, even though you can't really find many right now. So, yeah, watching a lot of TV, trying to stay connected with people that I care about.

And then honestly, dude, I'm so grateful for like Instagram and Twitter right now because it's-- I have talked to people from all over the world. And they share their stories with me from Italy, from China, from Spain and France and even obviously in our country.

And just to be able to like, chat with them or make them smile or make them laugh or send them a video or send them like a-- I've been doing a lot of Instagram lives. And people have been reaching out that that's really helping even if it's just like for an hour a week. So I'm just trying to do as much as I can now.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Do you feel like you're reconnecting with people from your life that you weren't necessarily connected with anymore, and everyone is kind of checking in? And you're like, oh, yeah, that you, all right. I didn't even know we were friends anymore. And, of course, how are you?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: No, I have a really close group of people. And we've always been close. The only thing is now we can't just wait and see each other. And that's been sort of rough. I'm craving physical interaction and hanging out with my friends and next, be able to give a hug to someone.

So that's a little strange. And, again, thank god we have Face Time and what we're on right now and stuff like that. But it's definitely-- I definitely enjoy physical interaction. So it's been good here.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Have you checked in with your castmates from "Lonestar" to see how they're doing?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, we've had a group chat since we started shooting. Luckily, all of them are doing really well. And they're-- mostly of them are still in LA. I know a couple of them live in New York, but they stayed here. And, yeah, they're fine. Again, it's just weird. It's all just a little strange. And no one-- no one has seen it before. And no one really-- can't really be super prepared for this. So--

RICKY CAMILLERI: Yeah, so tell me about "9-1-1 Lonestar" and getting involved in this show. How did that-- how did that happen? Was it just an audition? Or what was the process like for you to get this character?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: It was a-- it was just a basic audition. And like, oh, man-- uhh-- maybe June or July. And then I didn't hear anything for like, four weeks. And then four weeks later, I get a call that they want to test me for the role of TK.

And then literally two days later, I get another email. They're like, Rob Lowe wants to chemistry read with you. And I was just like, what is going on? So it was-- it took a while, and then it happened really quick. And then before--

RICKY CAMILLERI: What does the chemistry-- what does a chemistry read with Rob Lowe look like, feel like, sound like? How does that happen?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Probably the way you would imagine it. It's a-- he's a big, the big character. So it was a little intimidating at first. I'm like, holy shit, this is Rob Lowe. And then we sort of just like, sat down and talked. And then I was like, oh, wow, you're just like a normal really cool dude.

He's an amazing father. He cares about his family. It's like family first. And then we got to sort talk about the work and about the scenes. And then I sort of was able to relax and just be like, OK, this might be my future co-star/dad. So let's just-- let's just do the best that I can.

And then we killed the chemistry read. And we started doing like, pushups in the middle of it. And we started nerding out about like, Tom Brady. And I was just like-- the media-- I was like, OK, there's some legit chemistry here.

RICKY CAMILLERI: How many pushups can Rob Lowe do?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: He's a fit dude. He's-- I mean, he looks amazing for his age. He could probably do-- he could do a lot. He-- I mean, we were keeping up for sure. He could do like, 50 first easily.

RICKY CAMILLERI: 50 straight?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah.

RICKY CAMILLERI: That's pretty hard. 50 straight pushups is pretty hard. I think I max out at around like, 25, 30. That's-- that's like where-- that's where I hit it.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: If you've seen the show, he's in amazing shape. And he has some epic pecs. So I think that's from a lot of-- [LAUGHS]

RICKY CAMILLERI: So tell me about how TK has developed over the course of the season? You guys just wrapped up the first season? Or was that the midseason? That was the season finale, right? Or was it midseason?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, that was season finale, yeah.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Season finale. So tell me about how TK has developed over the course of this season?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Oh, man, I mean, it's been a massive roller coaster ride for TK. I mean, within literally within the first 5 minutes of the show, we see him possibly-- propose to the love of-- to the love of his life. And then that leads to an overdose. And then it leads to packing everything up and moving to a completely new state.

So within the first episode, there's already so much happening. And then throughout the season, you know, there's all these waves of like, dealing with his father's cancer and dealing with his own stuff and dealing with his own super, super recent trauma with the heartbreak and the overdose.

And finally, as he sort of is getting used to Austin and the new firehouse and the people around him. And it seems like his dad is getting a little better. He goes and gets shot by a kid. And then we have to finish off the season with that. And then it ends with this like, pretty much like existential crisis.

He doesn't know if this is what he wants to do. He doesn't know if this was ever something he really wanted to do. He realizes that he only really became a firefighter to become closer with his father. And then in episode 10, he's given a situation where it is what he's supposed to do.

You know, it's in his blood. It's his instinct is to save people and to take care of people. So it's been a crazy journey for TK. And it's been amazing to play. It's sort of my favorite characters to watch. He's like really, really layered people.

RICKY CAMILLERI: So I just watched episode 10. And forgive me, maybe I turned my head at one moment. But what exactly caused the electric-- the electric pull and everything and all of the magnets to go out of whack and everything to be operating without even being plugged in?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Because it's solar flare.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Solar flare.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, so there was a gnarly one in the 2000s I believe in either Australia or Canada. And that-- solar flare happens. It is insane, sort of things like, [? armageddon ?] in a few days. Everything electrical goes bonkers.

And, yeah, they predicted in a really good way. That's sort of what it would look like. It's just complete mayhem, especially now when everything is-- we're solely based on electric and that kind of technology, it would not be pretty. That's for sure.

RICKY CAMILLERI: When you get a script for an episode, how much research do you feel like you have to do? Or is it fairly in the script? And since it's an emotional journey for your character, primarily, you can kind of focus on just what he has to do scene by scene.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, I sort of leave everything else up to the writers and creative people. I just focus on my stuff. And even sometimes, I like to not see, especially when I was in the hospital, I didn't need the emergencies that the rest of the crew went out on, because I wanted to see it for the first time on TV and to actually be surprised and to actually watch it as a fan because I've quickly become a fan of the show. And, yeah, I just sort of focus on TK's storyline because there's so much to play there and so much to keep in the back of my mind as an actor for him.

RICKY CAMILLERI: You're a director too, right?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: I mean, I would love to one day, yeah. When I was younger, I wrote a short film and somehow raised enough money to shoot it and had like a 40-person crew. And--

RICKY CAMILLERI: How did-- how did that go?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: It was amazing. You know, it's something that I still keep very close to my heart. And I would love to develop it eventually as a feature. But I think that was some of the largest learning experiences I've ever had in my life just to sort of navigate all those people and to see what every single person's job is and to be able to see everything from behind the camera and in front of the camera.

I think it just raised my awareness and appreciation for everything that goes into the process of filmmaking. And I think I was like, 17 or something. It really showed me that like, it is the largest team effort I think in any art form out there. And every single person is crucial to your overall product. So that was insane, especially at that age. I don't think I realized what I was actually getting myself into.

RICKY CAMILLERI: How old were you when you started acting professionally?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Professionally-- I think I was 18. 18, I did my first feature which was it felt like love. And then, again, it was like a tiny indie that was made for I think, like, 100-something thousand dollars. And didn't think anything of it. And then the next year, we got accepted into Sundance. And it became like a really big hit there.

And, again, I got thrown into Sundance and this whole industry that I had no idea about. And I was like, wow, this is actually happening. And this is real. And, again, that was just another moment of like, wow, this is so much, you know.

RICKY CAMILLERI: So before you even acted professionally, you raised money for a 40-person crew to make a short film?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, I thought that would be a good way to sort of sink my teeth into it.

RICKY CAMILLERI: [LAUGHS]

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: It's a bit of an extreme approach. But, yeah, it's just-- it's something that I would definitely want to do. And I respect actors so much that can do both. And, yeah, hopefully one day. I would love to do that.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Outside of "9-1-1 "Lonestar," what else is coming up for you? You've got a-- you've got a feature in the mix coming out soon, right?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yes, I have a feature called "Follow Me." And it is-- it's exactly what it sounds like. It's a social media thriller. And it's sort of a-- it sort of ask the question of like, what do we live our digital lives for, right? Are we doing it actually for ourselves to make people feel good? Or is it an attention or a ego or vanity type-like situation?

And it's all about something [INAUDIBLE] a really, really fun thriller-- Keegan Allen and Holland Roden. And it has this huge [INAUDIBLE] sort of connoisseur adventure kit that like, records all of his adventures and goes all over the world and does the craziest stuff. And then his friends surprised him with a birthday gift. And they'd bring him to an Escape Room in Russia.

And that's where my character comes in. And I sort of host them and bring them into this-- it's apparently like the most difficult Escape Room in the world. And it becomes a crazy movie-- insanity.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Are you-- is your character Russian?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, he's very Russian. And I--

RICKY CAMILLERI: So you do a Russian accent?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Yeah, I do a Russian accent. It's actually my first language. So--

RICKY CAMILLERI: Oh, wow.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: It was my--

RICKY CAMILLERI: That was easy.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: It was pretty easy. I got to say the accent was sort of the hardest thing that I was wrestling with of like, how do you make it not like the stereotypical accent that we see on TV? And I sort of just like, would talk to my dad on the phone for a very long time and just try to study his accent.

And we sort of found like a really nice middle ground. And, yeah, I got to speak tons of Russian in it. And it's a crazy movie. It's supposed to be released in August. Obviously whatever hap-- but yeah, I'm super excited about that one. I'm really proud of it.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Amazing. Well, congrats on "9/11 Lonestar," Ronen. And I look forward to seeing "Follow Me." And Dude, stay safe, stay healthy, stay sane. Enjoy as much television as possible and as much board games and LEGOs. Good luck with-- what is the LEGO set that you're getting in?

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: It's-- funny enough, it's a fire department LEGO set.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Oh, OK. [LAUGHS] Well, good luck on your-- oh, go ahead.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Hope to plug it into a scene hopefully next season, so we'll see.

RICKY CAMILLERI: OK, so there's a whole-- there's a con going on here. There's a long game that you've got going.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: Oh, yeah, definitely. It's going to be like a-- it's going to be like an Easter egg.

RICKY CAMILLERI: [LAUGHS] Well, Ronen, it's been a pleasure talking to you. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay sane, man.

RONEN RUBENSTEIN: You too. See you.

RICKY CAMILLERI: Take care.

[MUSIC PLAYING]