A day in the life of New York City’s finest. It’s the central theme behind “Blue Bloods,” the long-running crime drama that tells the story of the Reagans, a family that has been helping to protect the citizens of New York City for generations. The beginning of the show’s pilot pays homage to the Big Apple with images of the city’s neighborhoods as well as iconic New York City landmarks, all as Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” plays in the background. Meanwhile, Jamie Reagan (Will Estes) is starting his career as an NYPD officer. His graduation is overseen by his father, New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan (Tom Selleck), who tells the NYPD’s newest officers, “You have earned the distinction of being the best-trained, best-prepared police officers in the world ready to serve and protect the most vibrant city in the world.”
And the sights and sounds of New York City are something that the cast and crew truly draw on for each episode. The show films in New York City, according to the NYC Media & Entertainment website. The Daily Mail spotted the crew filming scenes with Danny Reagan (Donnie Wahlberg) and Eddie Janko (Vanessa Ray) in Hell’s Kitchen, a neighborhood located in Midtown Manhattan. As for Estes, he has a few reasons why he enjoys filming in the city that never sleeps.
What makes the experience of filming in New York City so special to Estes
In a “Connect Chat” segment on the official “Blue Bloods” YouTube Channel, Will Estes explained what it’s like filming in the Big Apple. “The best part about filming in New York City is the city itself. It’s one of the most alive places in the world. It’s so fun to get out on the streets and shoot and meet people … People walk through the shot and mess up the shot and sometimes they love the show and they’ll yell it out during a take. It’s pretty much nonstop excitement.” The actor, who was born in Los Angeles, also joked about making sure not to eat too much pizza or too many bagels, two of New York City’s main food groups.
Estes told Newsweek that the one aspect he really appreciates about “Blue Bloods” is that it is actually filmed in the city where the show is set, noting that Manhattan has been treated as a character throughout the show’s run. And it’s a city that the cast and crew headed back to months after the COVID-19 pandemic began. The New York Times noted that “Blue Bloods” was one of 35 TV shows that had returned to filming in the Big Apple by November 2020.