Tom Selleck reignites CBS feud over Blue Bloods cancellation

Tom Selleck has reignited his long-running feud with CBS over the cancellation of his show Blue Bloods, alleging the cast accepted a mᴀssive pay cut to keep the show going.

The acclaimed actor, 81, played New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan on the CBS police drama, which ran for 14 seasons from 2010-2024.

Speaking on Wednesday’s episode of Ted Danson’s podcast, Where Everybody Knows Your Name, Selleck claimed the cast, which includes Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan and Will Estes, took a huge 25 per cent pay cut to prolong the show.

He said: ‘The real truth to that is in the last year of [the series], at our last family dinner, everybody wanted to come back. We’d already taken a 25% cut in salary,’ adding they had already ‘done all sorts of things to keep the show going.’

Selleck reportedly earned around $200,000 an episode for Blue Bloods, adding up to $4.4million per 22 episode season. This dropped to $150,000 per episode for the final season. 

Selleck said the show was ‘certainly not out of ideas’, saying, ‘Out of the top 100 shows on broadcast television, Blue Bloods was number six in our fifteenth year. Nobody wanted to leave. It may be some kind of record to have the same cast intact for that length of time.’

Tom Selleck has reignited his long-running feud with CBS over the cancellation of his show Blue Bloods, alleging the cast accepted a mᴀssive pay cut to keep the show going – pictured in a still

The acclaimed actor, 81, who played New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan on the CBS police drama which ended in 2024, said none of the cast wanted to leave the series, which ran for 14 seasons from 2010 – pictured 2024

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for CBS for comment and has yet to hear back. 

Selleck has previously waxed lyrical about his disappointment over the show’s abrupt cancellation, saying he was ‘frustrated’ with the decision in a 2024 interview with TV Insider.  

‘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 said.

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‘In a Top 100 Shows of 2023-2024 (in total viewers, we were number 9 out of 100), if you discount the three football shows, we’re #6!’ he said.

He added: ‘My frustration is the show was always taken for granted because it performed from the get-go.’ 

He continued: ‘I’m not going to turn into a bitter old guy saying, “Get off my lawn!” I don’t believe in holding grudges, but 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.’

‘So how do I feel? It’s going to take a long time to sort all of this out.’

‘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.’

Speaking on Wednesday’s episode of Ted Danson’s podcast, Where Everybody Knows Your Name, Selleck claimed the cast, which includes Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan and Will Estes, accepted a huge 25 per cent pay cut to prolong the show – cast pictured 

Selleck was said to have relocated back to his California ranch with wife Jillie Mack after 14 years of commuting to and from the East Coast to film the show, which was suddenly halted by CBS bosses at the end of last year.

‘CBS will find an awful lot of people aren’t ready to say goodbye to it,’ he said at the time.

‘The show’s more popular than ever, and I think [numbers] will increase with the interest this year. We’re certainly not out of ideas.’ 

The popular series had an impressive 14-year run on CBS with 14 seasons. Blue Bloods became the second-longest running scripted show on CBS behind NCIS (with 21 seasons).

The series premiered September 24, 2010.

Blue Bloods centers around the Reagans, with Frank as the patriarch and the New York Police Department (NYPD) Police Commissioner.

His son Danny, played by Wahlberg, is an NYPD Detective and his other son Jamie, played by Will, is an NYPD sergeant. Frank’s daughter Erin, played by Bridget, is an ᴀssistant district attorney.

His son Joe was killed by a corrupt cop in the line of duty.

Selleck is seen with wife Jillie in 2017

Despite a career spanning decades in Hollywood, he previously said he was in jeopardy of falling behind on bills and worried about losing his 63-acre California ranch (pictured) after the show was axed

Selleck shared an official statement in 2023 about Blue Bloods ending: ‘For the past 13 years it has been an honor and a privilege to work on a show that now only celebrates the men and women who protect and serve in New York City, but also displayed the importance of family.’

The TV star continued: ‘Working alongside these incredible actors, writers, producers, directors and crew has been a dream come true and I’m grateful to have been a part of this extraordinary group for over 275 episodes.’

The presidents of CBS Entertainment and CBS Studios shared a joint statement: ‘Blue Bloods will forever be a beloved part of CBS’s legacy.’

‘It ruled Friday nights with unprecedented dominance since its premiere and established itself as a pillar of our winning lineup with an exceptionally devoted fan base.’

They added: ‘We’ll be forever grateful to the legendary Leonard Goldberg for developing this signature series and to the amazing cast led by Tom Selleck, who America embraced as a family and watched as welcomed guests at the Reagan dinner table.’

Selleck previously claimed the fallout from the end of Blue Bloods could end up costing him his twilight years on the ranch.

Despite a career spanning decades in Hollywood – including a reported $200,000-per-episode Blue Bloods deal – he told CBS Sunday Morning that he was in jeopardy of falling behind on bills after the show was axed.

‘You know, hopefully I keep working enough to hold on to the place,’ Selleck said, to which CBS correspondent Tracy Smith responded, ‘Seriously, that’s an issue? If you stopped working?’

Selleck said: ‘That’s always an issue – if I stopped working, yeah. Am I set for life? Yeah, but maybe not on a 63-acre ranch!’