Blue Bloods is officially over, but Tom Selleck’s impact on the series has not been forgotten. Cast member Abigail Hawk revealed how the Magnum, P.I. actor changed her life in more ways than one — starting with her character’s name.
Abigail, 42, appeared in an interview on Spectrum News on New Year’s Eve in Manhattan’s Times Square. She was joined by interviewer Shannan Ferry to talk about how much the CBS series had such a big impact on her career before the series finale aired on December 13.
“So much happened,” Abigail, who played Abigail Baker for 14 seasons, said while reflecting on her life from when the show started to now. “I literally became the woman that I am. I mean, it still feels a little bit surreal, but I think at this point, I’m just leaning into the gratitude aspect of it. It happened. It was amazing.”
“It’s such a beautiful chapter in the book of my life and I’m so excited to see what happens next, especially because I feel like Detective Baker is the foundation that every woman wants to have, which is way cooler than me,” she continued.
Shannan said that Abigail was in fact “so cool” and brought up the fact that Tom “changed the character’s name to match” her real name.
“Oh, he sure did,” Abigail confirmed. “Not that there’s anything wrong with the name Melissa. I’ve gotten a lot of flack over this but he just really liked the name Abigail, so thanks Mom and Dad.”
Over the years, several Blue Bloods fans have pointed out on Reddit how Tom’s Frank Reagan called Abigail by the name Melissa in earlier season 1 episodes. It’s a topic that Abigail discussed during a January 2021 interview with Starry Mag, confirming that the character’s name was officially changed on Tom’s accord.
The Chicago native was asked to recall how the character was initially described to her when she first signed on for the show.
“Originally, she did not have a last name. She did not have an age. She did not even have a gender. She did not have a race,” Abigail said. “She did not have an anything. She was either Detective Mel or Melissa. So, no first name. Definitely not my first name.”
“I got the role and about two to three episodes in Tom decided to change it to Abigail because he thought Melissa was too ordinary, which I guess is a compliment — so I’ll take it,” she revealed. “Then he cleared with the lawyers the last name Baker. He obviously thought it was very important for me to have a last name since I was a person on the show. So, they gave me a full-fledged identity and that was all him.”
In the show’s final episode, Abigail joined Frank to crack one final case about a gang ravaging New York City. In the end, the Reagan crew was able to find the culprit and reunite at one final family dinner at the iconic dinner table.