Blue Bloods send-off confirmed for October start date

Fans who were hoping CBS might reverse course on canceling Blue Bloods are out of luck. CBS has confirmed the coming final round of episodes in the fall are the end of this long-running hit. 

Since 2010, Blue Bloods has been one of the backbones of CBS programming. As a Friday night mainstay, fans love the multi-generational drama of the Reagans, a family of cops, and a DA daughter finding justice for the people of New York City. It's anchored by the cast of Donnie Wahlberg, Will Estes, Bridget Moynahan, and, of course, Tom Selleck as NYPD Police Commissioner Frank Reagan.

The show has been a reliable success and is still the highest-rated network drama on Friday nights, not to mention it's a hit on syndication. It had a few brushes with possible cancellation but still continued on as the cast loves it to the point of accepting pay cuts to keep the show around. 

However, CBS announced that season 14 would be the end. They mitigated it a bit by having the first half air in early 2024 and the second half is set to air in the fall. Fans are still upset about the cancellation, and the actors were likewise pushing for it to continue but to no avail.

Why did CBS cancel Blue Bloods?

Fans had been hoping that, as with SWAT, CBS might decide to reverse the cancellation. The show is still a hit, and the cast's willingness to accept cuts to keep it going spoke to the desire for the series to continue on. But CBS seems adamant it will end this fall. 

While speaking about CBS' new fall schedule, President Amy Reisenbach talked about the end of Blue Bloods and how, no matter how loved it may be with fans, it's a business decision to end it.

"We really want to thank the cast and crew, everyone involved in the show. We absolutely will miss the family dinners. It is important to give show the sendoff it deserves. 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."

True, NCIS is still rolling into season 22 but a show lasting 14 seasons is a rare feat, especially for a police procedural. There's also the cost of cast contracts and CBS wanting to recover revenue lost to the 2023 Hollywood strikes. With the network wanting fresher hits like Tracker, keeping a long-runner, even one as successful as Blue Bloods, is harder to justify.

Thus, as much as fans and cast hoped otherwise, Blue Bloods will start its final run of episodes in October, with December seeing the final Reagan family dinner and ending this epic run. 

Blue Bloods season 14 airs Fridays at 10/9c on CBS.