Tom Selleck loves to talk — to share his opinions, offer advice, and joke. In my many interviews with the iconic actor during Blue Bloods’ 14-year run, where he’s played NYPD Police Commissioner Frank Reagan since 2010, he clearly enjoyed paying tribute to his long-lived cop family show and his fellow actors and writers. What he preferred not to do was spoil any upcoming plotlines. “There are some surprises,” he did give away, “but they will be positive ones.”
We can be sure, though, of what will take place between now and Blue Bloods’ final episode in December: Commissioner Reagan will continue to preside over the NYPD, as well as the family’s weekly Sunday dinners, held at the Brooklyn home that he and his pop, long-retired PC Henry (Len Cariou), share. Det. Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) and Sgt. Jamie Reagan (Will Estes) will investigate more cases; Jamie’s wife, police officer Eddie Janko (Vanessa Ray), will arrest suspects; and senior ADA Erin Reagan (Bridget Moynahan) will watch over Manhattan’s trial bureau. And who knows, we might even see some Reagans again if Blue Bloods gets the reported spinoff that’s been tantalizing fans for months. “There are endless possibilities as to what a Blue Bloods spinoff would look like,” CBS Studios president David Stapf has said. “We have a whole season [of Blue Bloods] to go…so there’s still time for us to figure a spinoff out.”
Here are excerpts from two exclusive interviews with the Emmy and Golden Globe winner (he won both for his other classic TV role as private detective Magnum, P.I.). The first was conducted on Blue Blood’s Brooklyn set last spring as the cast gathered for their final photo and video shoots about a month before they shot the series finale. The second was a conversation with Selleck via phone when he was back on his California ranch shortly after all filming had concluded.
Although he had finished his scenes a few days before most of the cast, in a sign of respect and love for the series, the star flew back from Los Angeles where he was filming a commercial to watch Blue Bloods’ final day of filming on Thursday, June 20. “I watched the last scenes with Bridget and Steve (Schirripa] and then Donnie and Marisa [Ramirez]” Selleck recounted. “It was hard, but I didn’t want to just stay home; I wanted to be there, and I felt an obligation to share the experience.”
What was your very last Blue Bloods scene?
Tom Selleck: My last scene was ironically family dinner; that was also the first scene I shot on the show 15 years ago! I’m not going to tell you everything about the last episode…but the family dinner kind of reunites the Reagan family. Erin’s daughter Nicky (Sami Gayle) was there and so was Jack (Tony Terraciano) Danny’s older son. Everybody agreed with me that we should close the set for the family dinner and not exploit that. Most of them had four more days to shoot, but not me.
What was that moment like?
We were shooting for hours and all of a sudden, they said ‘Well, that was the last shot.’ I always wanted to say this poem, “Love Is Not All” by Edna St. Vincent Millay. There was crying and there was an enormous amount of hugs. Donnie was really broken up; he didn’t say much. Bridget spoke. Just about everybody said something. Vanessa [Ray] was pretty beat up by the experience.
How do you feel now that Blue Bloods is over? You’ve been vocal about not wanting the show to end after the 14th season.
I’m kind of frustrated. During those last eight shows, I haven’t wanted to talk about an ending for Blue Bloods but about it still being wildly successful. In a Top 100 Shows of 2023-2024 (in total viewers, we were number 9 out of 100), if you discount the three football shows, we’re #6 ! I’m not going to turn into a bitter old guy saying, “Get off my lawn!” I don’t believe in holding grudges, but if you were to say to the television network, “Here’s a show you can program in the worst time slot you got, and it is going to guarantee you winning Friday night for the next 15 years,” it would be almost impossible to believe. My frustration is the show was always taken for granted because it performed from the get-go. So how do I feel? It’s going to take a long time to sort all of this out. I remember after the weekend [of the final episode’s shoot], I said, “I’ve got to get to bed early tonight because I have to do my dialogue for Monday.’” Well, there was no Monday. It’s just going to take a while.
What will you miss most about the Blue Bloods set?
The actors. The family of actors is as close as the Reagan family and the characters that they play. There’s isn’t a single one of them who didn’t want to come back. Most shows don’t end that way — there’s petty jealousy and all sorts of things– and we seemed to overcome that. It’s something for everybody to hang their hats on and be proud of.
You all seem so comfortable with each other on and off-screen.
You set a tone early, and I’m proud to say I had something to do with that, having had such a good experience on Magnum. On Blue Bloods, in some ways, I was the patriarch of the actor Reagan family. They knew I [had worked on a long-running show before] so I had some credibility when problems came up. It helped, I think.
What does the show say about the police? What was important to you?
I assumed from the first script that [the NYPD] would be represented three-dimensionally. And the show did keep that promise in the sense that we showed flawed cops and we showed good cops and we have a family of cops that mostly try to do the right thing. We entertain people and say something positive — not that police don’t screw up or there aren’t corrupt cops, it’s a mix — and I think that’s how we developed such a broad audience.
Speaking of police, how important are Frank’s three close sounding boards at police HQ, 1 Police Plaza: Lt. Sid Gormley (Robert Clohessy), Det. Abigail Baker (Abigail Hawk), and Deputy Commissioner of Public Information Garrett Moore (Gregory Jbara)?
They’re probably the people he’s closest to in the entire police department. I really felt that Frank’s stories are what goes on behind the office’s closed door. They’re responsible for an awful lot of Frank’s success.
Do you have any regrets story-wise about what could have been for Frank?
Everybody says, “Well, it’d be nice to see [Frank] have a relationship.” If I had any regrets, it would be that because they weren’t writing a relationship, he didn’t get to flirt often enough. But that didn’t fit what became our format.
But Frank did have a couple of flings early on the show, including one with a reporter.
Yes, she was an old pal of his, played by Margaret Colin, who I knew from Three Men and a Baby. Frank’s not dead! He still wears his wedding ring, but he’s not beyond needing somebody and flirting with them. But we had first three stories each episode and then four when Vanessa [Ray] became a regular so there’s not really room for that. I would have had fun playing it, but you just can’t do it all.
You’ve told me that you believe Frank should not retire at the show’s conclusion. Can you confirm that he won’t?
There is a lot of stuff that happens in the final episode, but Frank is a constant. He remains a man alone and he is a police commissioner.
What else can you say about Frank Reagan?
I like my character! Most of the time I don’t know what the next script is going to be. You see what comes and informs you. Hmmmn— this is a different side of my character that I haven’t explored. I have to find a way to do it that’s consistent with who the audience thinks Frank is. Nobody’s perfect on the show; that’s why I think it [lasted so long].
Which Blue Bloods scenes or moments are your favorites?
My favorite scenes are with the family, especially at the Sunday dinner table. Also: when [Frank] was at [NYC’s] 9/11 memorial. It was the first time any show was allowed to shoot at the memorial. It was kind of an out-of-body experience.
What’s been most special about being part of this long-running hit show?
To get 14 — I say 15 years [referring to Part 2 of the 14th season here] and the cast is still basically intact. That doesn’t happen very often, people move on; they think they can do better. We’ve all kind of stuck together and it means so much for the quality of the show.
You’re not just an actor on Blue Bloods now, you’re a producer and an editor!
I was executive producer at Magnum by the end, and I was doing everything. I came in to produce and edit Blue Bloods when I really didn’t feel the actors were getting their due.
What do people on the street often say to you?
The ultimate compliment for me is when I get a salute from the real [cops]. Former police commissioner Bratton calls me “the Acting Commissioner.” But the salute from the real deal is a lot of fun.
What would surprise people the most about Tom Selleck? Your costars have often mentioned you’re quite funny.
Well, I don’t take myself real seriously. People were very surprised that in my book, [2024’s You Never Know] I talked about actor anxiety, the fear of failure, and stuff like that. Or that even in college my friends used to have to fix me up with [girls] because I was too shy to ask. They said, ‘That’s impossible; have you looked in the mirror?’
Your book went from childhood to Magnum. Is there one more book in you, perhaps talking about Blue Bloods and your hit series of TVmovies Jesse Stone?
It was really hard. It took four years and I’m not computer literate, so I wrote it with my pen and legal pad. I can’t wait to do the audio.
It’s surprising that Tom Selleck doesn’t use a computer.
I don’t! But I don’t live in a cave somewhere. I’m lucky to have assistants who send the emails and the texts. That way, I can say, ‘Oh no, I don’t do that stuff.” I may have to now!
What’s next for Tom Selleck? A final Jesse Stone movie, perhaps?
It looks like now I might have to write [a script for another movie.]. It wouldn’t be a final one because everybody loves it. Jesse is a great character, and it would be fascinating to find out where he is quite a few years later. But I need to regroup; I don’t know what’s next, but assuming the phone doesn’t stop ringing, I’m going to keep working.
