The TV Legend Tom Selleck Almost Kept Off Blue Bloods

If you ever wondered why Magnum and Rick never got a proper reunion on Blue Bloods, here is the short version: Tom Selleck hit the brakes. Not because he does not like Larry Manetti (they are close), but because he worried the nostalgia would swallow the show. Manetti explained it himself, and honestly, it makes sense once you hear the reasoning.

Why Selleck initially said no

"First of all, Tom did not want to put me on the show because he thought it would confuse the audience because of Magnum."

He eventually changed his mind "about a year and a half ago" and told executive producer/writer Kevin Wade: "You know, I would love to get my friend Larry Manetti on Blue Bloods."

Manetti was clear: Selleck was not blocking him. He just did not want Blue Bloods to start feeling like Magnum P.I. in a cop-family wrapper. Given how welded those two are in TV history, that is a fair concern.

The reunion that was... carefully controlled

Manetti did get to work on Blue Bloods in New York, and he says the trip was a blast. Off-camera, he and Selleck did exactly what longtime friends do: they hung out. A lot. Manetti says he and his wife, Nancy, had dinner with Selleck at his favorite spot basically every night for nearly a week. On camera, though? Different story. Blue Bloods kept them out of the same scene. The thinking was simple: putting Magnum and Rick shoulder-to-shoulder again might yank viewers out of the Reagan family world and straight into 1980s Hawaii. It is a very behind-the-scenes kind of calculation, but you can see why the show played it that way.

Why their pairing is still a big deal

Their bond did not start on Blue Bloods, obviously. It is Magnum P.I. that made Tom Selleck and Larry Manetti a TV two-hander people still talk about. Selleck’s Thomas Magnum was the charming chaos agent; Manetti’s Orville 'Rick' Wright was the streetwise fixer who always knew a guy and read a room. They were less co-workers and more brothers in arms, each covering the other’s blind spots. That connection only got stronger as their real-life friendship deepened, which is a big part of why Magnum P.I. hit as hard as it did and why any on-screen reunion now comes with baggage (the good kind, but baggage nonetheless).

Quick hits and where to watch

• Magnum P.I. (original) ran 8 seasons; created by Donald P. Bellisario and Glen A. Larson; main cast included Tom Selleck, John Hillerman, Roger E. Mosley, and Larry Manetti; IMDb score sits at 7.5/10; available to stream/rent/buy on Amazon Video.
• Blue Bloods is currently streaming on Hulu in the U.S.

So no, Blue Bloods did not turn into a Magnum P.I. reunion hour, but the friendship is very much alive off-screen. And if you were hoping for them sharing a frame again, never say never — just do not expect the show to undercut itself to make it happen.