Tom Selleck isn’t holding back his true feelings about Blue Bloods ending after 14 seasons.
“I’m kind of frustrated,” Selleck told TV Insider, pointing out that the long-running intergenerational cop show has been a constant at CBS for over a decade. “During those last eight shows, I haven’t wanted to talk about an ending for Blue Bloods but about it still being wildly successful.”
He added that while he doesn’t believe in “holding grudges” and doesn’t take the network’s decision personally, he still doesn’t agree with — or understand — their decision to conclude the show.
“If you were to say to the television network, ‘Here’s a show you can program in the worst time slot you got, and it is going to guarantee you winning Friday night for the next 15 years,’ it would be almost impossible to believe,” he added.
Selleck also argued that the show, which debuted in 2010 and has so far spanned 285 episodes, “was always taken for granted because it performed from the get-go.”
That said, the actor knows he will have to accept the series’ conclusion — he just needs some time to adjust.
“So how do I feel? It’s going to take a long time to sort all of this out,” Selleck said. “I remember after the weekend [of the final episode’s shoot], I said, ‘I’ve got to get to bed early tonight because I have to do my dialogue for Monday.’ Well, there was no Monday. It’s just going to take a while.”
As for where the series will conclude, Selleck kept the finer details close to his chest — but did hint at an eventful Reagan family dinner in the final episode.
“My last scene was ironically family dinner. That was also the first scene I shot on the show 15 years ago,” Selleck said, referencing the show’s tradition of bringing the cast together once an episode for a Sunday meal. “I’m not going to tell you everything about the last episode… but the family dinner kind of reunites the Reagan family.”
Of filming the scene, he added, “There was crying and there was an enormous amount of hugs.”
CBS announced that Blue Bloods would end with its 14th season last fall and has repeatedly squashed hopes that it might be renewed.
“It is important to give [the] show the sendoff it deserves,” CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach said in May. “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. We are going to end the show come December.”
Despite the firm cancellation statements from CBS, several Blue Bloods cast members have campaigned to keep the show running after the second half of season 14 wraps up this fall, with Selleck saying in May, “I will continue to think that CBS will come to their senses.”
The long-running drama follows the lives of NYPD’s First Family of Law Enforcement: the Reagans. Selleck stars as patriarch and police commissioner Frank Reagan, who leads a family of cops dedicated to protecting their city. The series stars Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, Will Estes, and Andrew Terraciano as his children.
Moynahan previously teased the final family dinner to Entertainment Weekly, saying, “There’s some nice revelations in that last episode of season 14 that wrap up at that family dinner. For us to go out on such a special family dinner on our last episode, I think will resonate with the fans.”
She added of the coming twists and turns, “Fans will really get a kick out of some of ’em… And then there might be a surprise that isn’t so hopeful.”
Blue Bloods will return to CBS with its midseason premiere on Oct. 18.