blue-bloods-finally-renewed-for-14th-season

‘Blue Bloods’ Finally Renewed for 14th Season, Core Cast of Characters All Returning

CBS just announced that Blue Bloods will return for the 2023-2024 season — the cop drama’s 14th installment on the network. Many of the show’s original stars, like Tom Selleck, Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, and Will Estes, will all return. Showrunner Kevin Wade and his production team also return.

Blue Bloods was missing from CBS’ list of drama series renewals last month, triggering questions in the entertainment business. Deadline reported that a Season 14 pickup for the long-running hit was tied up in difficult negotiations, with CBS pushing for significant budget cuts. Some of those cuts included a 25% reduction for above-the-line talent, including actors.

Turns out that the cast and producers did eventually agree to salary reductions. According to Deadline, management agreed to cuts in order to keep the show going and to keep the hundreds of crew employed. That paved the way for a Season 14 renewal.

Selleck, Wahlberg, Moynahan, Estes, as well as Len Cariou, Marisa Ramirez and Vanessa Ray all star in the series. Wade executive produces the show with Siobhan Byrne-O’Connor, Ian Biederman, and Dan Truly. CBS Studios distributes Blue Bloods.

Blue Bloods has dominated Friday nights since its premiere and remained an important anchor for CBS’ winning lineup,” said Amy Reisenbach, President, CBS Entertainment. “Led by the outstanding Tom Selleck, and an incredible cast and creative team, viewers continue to embrace the Reagan’s, their law enforcement family, and the series’ dramatic storytelling. We can’t wait to pull a chair up to the Reagan family dinner table for another fantastic season.” 

A new Blue Bloods episode drops this Friday, March 31

Blue Bloods enjoyed Friday’s #1 most watched primetime program slot for over a decade before it almost got cancelled this year. It is the #3 overall broadcast drama with 9.54 million viewers. Figuring in live and 35-day multi-platform viewing, the series scores more than 11 million viewers an episode. Blue Bloods is also ranks in the top 10 series on Paramount+, based on total minutes viewed. Netflix, who doesn’t share specific data about tis shows, has admitted that Blue Bloods performs well for them, too.

The renewal leaves just three CBS shows up in the air. Longtime series S.W.A.T., freshmen East New York, and True Lies are the network’s only scripted series awaiting word on their futures.

Coincidentally, this Friday debuts a new Blue Bloods episode titled The Naked Truth. CBS released a synopsis of the episode on Monday.

“Jamie (Will Estes) and Eddie (Vanessa Ray) find themselves at odds when Jamie learns that Eddie’s close friend Tracey (Alysha Umphress) may be using the restaurant she owns as a drug front. Also, Erin forms an alliance with Anthony and her ex-husband, Jack Boyle (Peter Hermann), when she is accused of causing the suicide of a former colleague; Frank (Tom Selleck) weighs whether he should fire a female officer who has an online profile featuring naked photos of herself; and Danny and Baez try not to be influenced by their own biases when they are faced with various descriptions of the same suspect.”