Star of hit TV show says cast took huge pay cuts before ‘frustrating’ cancellation

"Blue Bloods" stars Will Estes, Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan and Tom Selleck.WireImageIf you purchase a product through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.Tom Selleck and his “Blue Bloods” costars did everything they could to save the CBS procedural from cancellation — even taking pay cuts.“Everybody wanted to come back. We’d already taken a 25 percent cut in salary. We’d already done all sorts of things to keep the show going,” Selleck, 81, said during the Wednesday, July 29, episode of Ted Danson’s “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” podcast. Despite “Blue Bloods” being a “labor of love” for the cast and crew, CBS canceled the show in November 2023. The 14th and final season ended in December 2024. Selleck, who played New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan, called the decision “very frustrating,” citing the show’s strong ratings. “Out of the top 100 shows on broadcast television, ‘Blue Bloods’ was No. 6 in our 15th year,” he said. “Nobody wanted to leave, everybody was gonna stay on. That’s hard to get.”“Blue Bloods” followed the Reagans, an Irish-American Catholic family in New York City with a history of working in law enforcement. In addition to Selleck, the show starred Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, Will Estes and Len Cariou. Wahlberg now stars in the spinoff series, “Boston Blue,” reprising his role as Danny Reagan. Moynahan and Cariou have made appearances on “Boston Blue,” which premiered in 2025, but Selleck isn’t sure he wants to. READ MORE: CBS sets fall 2026 premiere dates — See when ‘Tracker,’ ‘Marshals’ and more shows return“I don’t know if I would do ‘Boston Blue’. That’s another show,” he said during a November 2025 interview with Hour Detroit. “I think it’s partly my lot in life to make sure ‘Blue Bloods’ has its place in television history, but I don’t think it’s my lot in life to keep playing Frank Reagan.”Selleck added that he still doesn’t know why CBS canceled the flagship series. President of CBS Entertainment Amy Reisenbach addressed the decision during a May 2024 press conference. “We love this cast, we love their passion for the show. All shows have to come to an end. It’s important to us to refresh the schedule,” she said.“Blue Bloods” is available to stream on Paramount+. Season 2 of “Boston Blue” premieres on CBS Friday, Oct. 9. Fans freak out over rare photo of Jonathan Taylor Thomas with ‘Home Improvement’ costars ‘Chicago Fire’ loses main cast member after 14 seasonsReality TV star explains why she didn’t have sex during 4-year marriage‘General Hospital’ shocks fans by recasting popular characterSara Donnellan is a trending entertainment news writer. She worked as a TV news reporter for NJ.com, covering scripted and reality television and other viral TV moments, answering viewers’ burning questions and...This article was produced with assistance from AI tools and reviewed by AL.com staff.