‘Blue Bloods’: Priest’s Police Protest Puts Tom Selleck at Odds With Legendary Actor

Blue Bloods brought in another beloved actor to share scenes with Tom Selleck in this week’s episode, “Good Intentions.” Stacy Keach returned as Archbishop Kearns, who has represented the Catholic Church whenever a religious issue crosses paths with Commissioner Frank Reagan and the New York City Police Department. The latest issue dividing the two came when someone at the NYPD leaked a surprisingly important 911 tape involving a priest.

At the start of “Good Intentions,” Kearns stormed into Frank’s office, refusing to even sit down. Father McDougal (Jared Canfield), a critic of the police who joins “Defund the Police” protests, was burglarized the night before. When Kearns told Frank McDougal called 911, Frank could only laugh because that meant the very people McDougal doesn’t like had to help him. Kearns was still incensed, especially because the 911 call was leaked to the press. Frank apologized for that, but it didn’t cool off Kearns at all.

“I’ll tell you what’s not well intentioned. The fact that every day, there’s a new existential crisis in the institutions of our country,” Kearns rambled. “What we once thought was eternal is now being cast aside by the mob!” Frank shrugged, “Hey, they’re at my gates, too.” As he sat down, Kearns told Frank he was embarrassing the church. “Not the priest who is throwing gasoline on the fires that burn in this city day and night?” Frank wondered. Frank agreed that the NYPD would find who was responsible for leaking the tape, and Kearns wanted a strict punishment.

That strict punishment didn’t come. Frank did have Abigail (Abigail Hawk) find out who the leaker was, but Frank told a shocked Gormley (Robert Clohessy) and Garrett (Gregory Jbara) that he didn’t actually want to know the leaker’s identity because that would mean he’d have to do something about it. Frank decided againstpunishing whoever was responsible because the “boots on the ground got a big kick out of it.” Rather than hurt morale among the police by making the Church happy, Frank decided it would be for the best to punish no one. “A boost in morale at a time when it is sorely needed,” Frank said. “And I ain’t about to throw a wet blanket on a boost in cop’s morale.” Still, Frank told Gormley and Garrett that this can’t happen again because the NYPD “doesn’t play pranks on the public we’re sword to serve.”

Frank had one last meeting with Kearns, telling him that the people responsible for the leak were dealt with “appropriately.” The meeting was at McDougal’s church, which puzzled Frank. He was there to tell McDougal he was being shuffled off to Buffalo. It turns out that Kearns also thought McDougal was a pain. “A good cop needs street smarts, so does a good priest,” Kearns said. “But standing outside a police station with a bullhorn demanding the cancellation of the cops… What do you think? Nothing’s going to happen?” Frank smiled. “Probably a tactical error in there somewhere.” Frank also said he missed personal responsibility, and Kearns agreed to pray that “we’re just going through a temporary drought.”

Good intentions led to other mistakes in this week’s episode. Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) accidentally led a stalker to the woman who was trying to escape him. Anthony (Steven Schirripa) thought a woman he put behind bars was really innocent, only to learn that she really did kill someone and ordered the hit on another person while behind bars. Jamie (Will Estes) misjudged Eddie’s (Vanessa Ray) father Armin Janko (Michael Cullen), who was released from prison and really was trying to escape a life of crime. Blue Bloods airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS.