Behind the Scenes Blue Bloods Drama That Left Jennifer Esposito Out of Job
Blue Bloods has been on the screen since 2010.
In thirteen years, it has seen many changes and cast rotations. But there was one particular and very unseemly instance of the latter that tarnished the series reputation.
Jennifer Esposito was a part of Blue Bloods since its inception in 2010. In the series she portrayed Jackie Curatola, a Detective First Grade with the New York Police Department.
Although not a member of the main cast, she was BB's regular and seemed inextricably tied to the overall plot. However, Esposito was very unpleasantly stricken out from the cast list in 2012.
During filming the third season of Blue Bloods, Jennifer Esposito's usually chronic Celiac disease became abruptly acute. In layman's terms, the disease is a type of allergy to gluten, ubiquitous in most foods. It can be so severe that it causes you to pass out. So did Jennifer Esposito on the set of season 3.
After hospitalization, the actress was advised by her doctor to take a medical leave which she did. That was when the drama actually began.
CBS that produces Blue Bloods didn't satisfy Esposito's request for a reduced work week – it was necessary medically, the actress said. In the eye of the network, Jennifer must have been simulating her condition that wasn't that dangerous, she assumed.
So she was fired with a following statement by CBS that said Esposito was unable to carry out the duties of her role due to her special needs. And Jackie Curatola was mildly taken out of the series' plot.
The actress didn't hold back and blamed the network for eliminating the only minority character from Blue Bloods. Right away Jennifer Esposito faced a surge of support from all over the internet. Reddit users in particular called out CBS for the unethical move.
"And what's even worse is that on top of putting her on unpaid leave, they are preventing her from being able to work elsewhere. I lost all respect for CBS after this. Other networks are able to work around illnesses all the time. NBC worked around the TWO times Mariska Hargitay had to recover from emergency surgery for a collapsed lung. CBS could work around Jennifer Esposito's Celiac Disease with minimal inconvenience," went one Redditor's comment.
Despite the support garnered, Jennifer Esposito didn't manage to propel her case into official investigation. Meanwhile, Blue Bloods spanned for ten seasons more without Jackie Curatola.