Ever since we met the late Joe Reagan’s son, Joe Hill (Will Hochman), we’ve seen the impact that it had on the entire family—especially on him.
It was more evident than ever in the latest episode of Blue Bloods. Joe’s case intersects with his uncle Danny’s (Donnie Wahlberg). At first, Joe is more focused on his part of the investigation, but when it came to choosing between helping Danny and a victim and letting a suspect get away with evidence, he chose the former. When he said that what mattered was the woman helping them was alive, Danny remarked on his personal growth and Joe said he learned it from him. TV Insider turned to Hochman about how Joe has changed and the end of the show.
Given Joe and Danny’s last conversation and the quip about personal growth, how has Joe changed as a cop since he’s gotten to know the Reagan side of his family and the more cases he works with Danny and Jamie (Will Estes)? What has he learned from each of them?
Will Hochman: Since Joe first met his Reagan family, he’s gone through a steady whirlwind of change and, importantly, growth. The more cases he works with his family, the more he learns not only about the job but about himself. He has, thankfully, matured. There has been less to prove and more to give and so much of that growth has come from working with Danny and Jamie on the job, and from the meaningful conversations they share in those in-between moments.
What can you preview about how the show ends in general and for Joe?
I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to say. But I will offer that the five seasons that Joe has been a character on Blue Bloods has been a necessary journey for him. Joe had so much to learn. So did I. The show ends with Joe having arrived more fully into his own life, feeling grateful for this group of people he finally gets to call his family. He gets to claim them as his own and be claimed as one of theirs.
What was your last day on set like?
It was a hot, sunny, June day. I remember sweating a lot and feeling a wonderful combination of joy, presence, and gratitude. Everyone was there. Everyone. Hands were held. Jokes were made. Tissues were offered. It was the best.
Talk about filming that last family dinner.
I joined the show a few weeks before the Covid pandemic began. Now, here we are four years later and one of the few things that remained in the midst of navigating that time was getting to gather around the Reagan table and bring family dinner to life. I will miss it. The final family dinner had an extraordinary feel to it, maybe even a kind of sacred feeling. After 14 years, this was the last one. This was it. I did my best to be as present as possible and to take it all in, to look people right in the eye and to be there together.
