The announcement that the “Blue Bloods” performers took a pay cut in order to keep the show going was unexpected; other shows have taken similar sacrifices in the past.
Blue Bloods has been a consistent performer for CBS since its debut in 2010. The plot revolves around a police enforcement family in New York. As a result, it has an ensemble cast of actors, many of whom have been with the show since the beginning.
Now it appears that the Blue Bloods actors may have to take a wage reduction, though they are far from the first.
‘Blue Bloods’ returns for season 14 but at a cost.
When Blue Bloods first aired, Tom Selleck’s portrayal of New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan was a great draw. After all, Selleck is a television veteran with decades of experience on shows like Magnum, P.I.
However, the series has thrived just as much because of co-stars Bridget Moynahan, Donnie Wahlberg, and Will Estes as it has because of Selleck at this point, making this recent news a little sad.
On the one hand, Blue Bloods Season 14 has begun. However, according to Deadline, the cast will return with a 25% pay cut. The production was apparently stuck in negotiations, which is common for a show at this point in its run.
To be fair, the wage cut impacts everyone above-the-line talent, including showrunner Kevin Wade and the rest of the producing crew.
‘Blue Bloods’ is far from the only show to reduce actor pay.
According to Deadline, the performers and producers of Blue Bloods agreed to the salary concessions in order to keep hundreds of crew workers and support personnel working for at least another year. However, this is not the first time such a move has occurred.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the majority of The Big Bang Theory’s principal cast took a $100,000 per-episode pay cut in support of co-stars Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch, who were fighting for equal compensation for the entire cast.
Similarly, the Friends cast came together to ensure that all six key cast members earned the same amount. The same thing occurs with movies. For example, Keanu Reeves took a significant pay reduction so that The Devil’s Advocate could afford to hire co-star Al Pacino.
Kristen Stewart took a salary for On the Road that was around 1% of her Twilight compensation. Jonah Hill, meanwhile, famously worked for scale in order to star in Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street.
Season 15 will most likely be the series’ final season.
With CBS’s financial constraints, it appears that Blue Bloods may be coming to an end. Selleck and Moynahan hinted the prospect of the show ending after season 15 a few years ago. Given the latest developments, that forecast could very well come true.
It’s unknown whether Blue Bloods Season 15 will materialize at all, but it might be the show’s final season. That would allow the creative team to produce a worthwhile ending to gratify longstanding fans while also allowing the crew to plan their next ventures. The only way to know is to wait and see.
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