‘Blue Bloods’ Season 12 Finale: Frank Reagan’s Major Feud Explained by EP

Commissioner Frank Reagan does not like change, and the changes proposed by District Attorney Kimberly Crawford went too far for his linking in the Blue Bloods Season 12 finale. The leader of the New York City police department publicly called out Crawford in “Silver Linings,” making it clear he does not like her efforts to modernize prosecuting criminals. In an interview with Deadline, showrunner Kevin Wade explained where Frank (Tom Selleck) was coming from in his battle with Crawford (Roslyn Ruff).

When the writers were putting ideas together for Season 12, they considered how the Reagans would react to the changing perception of law enforcement in the real world. The family is made up of police officers and an assistant district attorney, not spokespeople, pundits, and politicians who respond to changes in real-time, Wade explained. “We are law enforcement, and what we do has been under attack, sometimes justly, often unfairly, for the last while now,” he told Deadline, expressing the family’s perspective. “So we can either quit and find another way to make a living, or we can stay and do what we do well. We choose to stay and fight.”

Wade admitted that not every episode in Season 12 stuck to that, but they were close to keeping the dynamic they aimed for. “The overriding dynamic we aimed for was telling stories about a family and extended family of law enforcement professionals choosing to get back to the basic reason they signed up in the first place – to try and get some justice and mercy for people who deserve it and to arrest and prosecute the people who deserve that,” Wade said.

The Reagan police officers might not want to make decisions based on public opinion, but A.D.A. Erin Reagan (Bridget Moynahan) is going to have to pay attention if she wants to become district attorney. At the end of the episode, Erin finally announced plans to run after spending Season 12 debating the idea. “For her character, the choice seemed to be: if you think you can do the job, then ask for it or otherwise, sit back down,” Wade told Deadline of Erin’s decision. “Time’s come for her to ask for it by announcing she’s running for the office.”

Blue Bloods will be back on CBS for a 13th season in the fall, with Tom Selleck front and center. In a PopCulture.com interview, Wade called Selleck the “center of gravity” for the show and he often talks with writers about Frank’s stories. “I’d go to him and say, ‘We want to do this. We want to do this kind of story,’ or ‘Have you come up against this kind of character?’” Wade told us. “And we talk about it, and eventually, we do it.” Past episodes of Blue Bloods are available on Paramount+.