“Blue Bloods” on CBS has an esteemed roster of talent, not the least of which is TV legend Tom Selleck as patriarch Frank Reagan. To a generation of moviegoers, Selleck may be best known for his role in “Magnum, P.I.”, but his presence in “Blue Bloods” means he is the rare actor with many iconic television role bearing his name. Many actors are lucky to only have one, but then again, Selleck is not like most actors, and you can tell that’s the case by the way his co-stars talk about him.
Selleck may have years of acting experience, more than any other actor in “Blue Bloods,” but Donnie Wahlberg, who plays Danny Reagan in the police procedural, has more than his share of things going against him. . The two have had many scenes together over the years, it can be said that the two actors have had many opportunities to get to know each other. As expected, Wahlberg had nothing but good things to say about his co-star.
Donnie Wahlberg calls Tom Selleck a ‘very smart, experienced guy’
Considering Tom Selleck has decades of experience in the industry, it should come as no surprise to learn that he is a pleasure to work with. After all, you wouldn’t be able to have such stable work without people being excited about the prospect of hiring you. In an interview with Outsider, Donnie Wahlberg said that he enjoyed working with the veteran actor. He said, “Tom [Selleck] himself is a leader. He is a very experienced, very intelligent person. Very dedicated, just like me. There were times when we both saw the hidden game and both wanted the same thing but we had very different ideas about how to go about it.”
It’s a great feeling for an actor to face someone who challenges them. It prevents one from being complacent and always striving to deliver another stellar performance. Wahlberg went on to describe how it was almost like a dance between the two, when he said, “Knowing when to step up, knowing that this is when Tom can really use my opinion . Or knowing when to step back and knowing this is when I have to trust Tom. It was as real off-screen as it was on-screen for Danny and Frank.”
It seems like there is nothing but respect between the actors. That dynamic has led to a lot of great storylines over the past 200-plus episodes, and it’s no surprise that “Blue Bloods” likely won’t end anytime soon.
The character of Selleck was one of the reasons Wahlberg joined the show
Part of the reason Selleck and Wahlberg get along so well is because Wahlberg sees so much of his father in Selleck’s character. In a 2013 interview with The Huffington Post, Wahlberg talked about what first drew him to “Blue Bloods.” As one of nine children, Wahlberg can see his character Danny as one of a group of siblings who constantly bicker but always come together in the end.
“‘Blue Bloods’ is an offensive show because they don’t make shows that focus on families like this anymore,” Wahlberg said. “Today it is about a family on the street selling heroin or about a husband having three wives. Everything focuses on the unusual family. When I read the Pilot, the family dinner scene attracted me the most. I felt the heat of my dad staring at me and my sister when we were arguing and the same heat was there with Tom Selleck and Bridget [Moynahan].
“And just like we teased Tom on screen, that was my childhood with my dad. He’s a very tough guy and we love trying to get past that tough exterior and make him laugh.
Off-camera, Selleck and Wahlberg have a father-son relationship
Wahlberg and Selleck’s relationship has deepened in the years since “Blue Bloods” first aired. In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight shortly after the death of his mother, Alma, Wahlberg spoke about his relationship with Selleck.
“Now I call him dad and he calls me son,” Wahlberg said. “I mean, that’s how we talk to each other off-camera. At first he used to grumble at me, like… ‘This music guy is so strange.’ And now he calls me son. And he would come in and give me a big hug. You know, you get a hug from Tom Selleck, which is a big deal.”
With a show like “Blue Bloods,” that only works if the actors can believably portray the family dynamics we’re all familiar with. Luckily for Wahlberg and Selleck, it seems like they didn’t need to fake the father-son relationship too much — and that’s one of the many reasons why “Blue Bloods” connects so well.
