It’s impossible to imagine Blue Bloods without Tom Selleck. He’s the patriarch of the Reagan dynasty for crying out loud! He sets the tone for each of the episodes, and he casts such a large shadow over the rest of his family that his presence can be felt even when he isn’t onscreen.
Selleck’s performance, coupled with his status as a TV icon, made him a huge get for the Blue Bloods team early on, but the actor almost passed on the role of Frank Reagan when it was first offered to him. There’s an alternate timeline where another veteran actor plays the New York Commissioner, and chances are it’s not as good.
Is Tom Selleck still on Blue Bloods?
Quality was never an issue with regards to Blue Bloods. According to Metro World News, Selleck liked the character and the basic premise of the show, and the biggest factor in his reluctance to sign on was scheduling. Selleck was still playing the title role in the Jesse Stone TV movies, and was concerned that taking on Blue Bloods would cut into his time as the iconic detective.
“[I was drawn to] the script first. I wasn’t really looking for a series”, Selleck told the outlet back in 2011. “I was concerned that I liked it because I do a series of movies for CBS called Jesse Stone. I love that character and it’s really successful. So the first thing I said when I went in was, ‘I’m not doing this at the expense of Jesse Stone‘, and they said, ‘We don’t want you to. Jesse is a home run for us.’ So that was nice.”
CBS wasn’t kidding about Jesse Stone being a home run. Selleck made nine Jesse Stone TV movies between 2005 and 2015, but the network was able to work things out so that the actor was able to continue solving cases as Stone, and running the New York Police Department as Reagan on Blue Bloods.
We’re glad CBS did, and Selleck, who has spent the last eight years playing Reagan exclusively, has managed to add yet another long-running show to his hall of fame career. The fact that he’s game to return for several more seasons is the icing on the cake.
