As Jamie, the youngest brother of the Reagan clan on “Blue Bloods,” Will Estes is constantly growing, changing, and learning — both on screen and off. One of Jamie’s biggest champions and mentors is family patriarch and New York City police commissioner, Frank Reagan, who’s played by Tom Selleck.
Selleck is a major draw for the show because of how well-known he became in the 1980s because to his role in “Magnum, P.I.” The seasoned actor has also had standout performances in “Friends,” “Three Men and a Baby,” and the made-for-TV “Jesse Stone” series. While “Blue Bloods,” which is in its 12th season and airs Fridays at 10 p.m. on CBS, is likely his biggest part to date, Estes has also appeared in “U-571” and shows like “7th Heaven” and “American Dreams”
As he does on the show, Selleck is constantly teaching Estes new things on the “Blue Bloods” set, as Estes recently revealed in an exclusive interview with Looper.
Tom Selleck knows his Blue Bloods character ‘inside and out’
On “Blue Bloods,” Commissioner Reagan is thoughtful, precise, and the emotional core of the series, which culminates in the weekly Reagan family dinners that the show centers around. It’s a pers onality that’s not too far off from the real-life actor.
“It’s funny, Tom isn’t that different than the commissioner,” says Estes. “He is really so professional. He’s so studied. He knows his character inside and out. You come on set, and you know you’re working with somebody who’s very well studied and very professional and executes time and time again, every scene. You need to be on your toes when you work with him, which makes it a lot of fun.”
There’s more to Selleck than just nailing his lines week after week and bringing a protective heart to the series — the show might not be what it is if it weren’t for him.
According to Estes, “He does a lot in little ways to architect the scenes that he’s in.” “For example, we have to keep up with the audience. Whenever feasible, we ought to avoid letting them know what we’re about to do before we actually do it. There are a ton of examples like that, showing how conversation can be cut if it is expositional, does not advance the plot or character arc, or is not necessary to get us where we need to go. He could produce, direct, and write the program, but he insists that all he wants to do is act.
With 12 seasons under their belt, the “Blue Bloods” family — which also includes Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, and Lou Cariou — is a tightknit cast that Estes constantly learns from: “I’ve just tried to soak up as much of it as I can.”