Treat Williams’ ‘Blue Bloods’ Role: What to Remember

June 13, 2023, 7:30pm

"Irish Exits" – Frank worries about his longtime friend Lenny Ross (Treat Williams) when he suspects the former officer is hiding his true reason for returning to the city. Also, Danny and Baez investigate when Baez and her daughter are targeted by a criminal Baez once put away; Eddie gives her partner, Badillo, relationship advice when his ex-girlfriend is physically attacked; and Anthony is sucked into the inner workings of an underground crime ring when his chaotic cousin, Joey, begs him for a favor, on BLUE BLOODS, Friday, May 12 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+*. Treat Williams returns as Lenny Ross, Frank's longtime friend. Pictured: Treat Williams as Lenny Ross. Photo: CBS ©2023 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available.

Hollywood and the world are mourning over the loss of Treat Williams, who died following a motorcycle accident on Monday. The actor has had a prolific career in the entertainment industry, having acted since 1969. He locked down both TV and film over the years, and his most recent one was continuing his recurring role as Lenny Ross on CBS’ long-running procedural Blue Bloods.

Beginning in Season 6, Williams portrayed Lenny Ross, a Detective in the New York City Police Department and Frank Reagan’s friend and former partner in the NYPD. Throughout his six episodes, Lenny got himself into some trouble and caused some trouble here and there, as well as giving Frank some more things to stress about, like an exposé, a job offer, or secrets, but their friendship stood the test of time. Seeing Williams and Tom Selleck working together so often was definitely a “treat,” and it’s going to be hard to not see them together anymore.

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Williams’ first appearance on Blue Bloods was back in 2016, and even though he only appeared in six episodes, it still seemed like it was a lot. It’s nice that fans got to see him as retired detective Lenny Ross one more time before his unexpected death, and with Blue Bloods, it wouldn’t be surprising if the series paid tribute to him in some way. Whether Ross dies off-screen and they give him a funeral fit for a police officer or just a nice tribute at the end of an episode, it’s likely the CBS series will give Williams at least something. Otherwise, tributes for the actor will likely continue rolling in, no matter where they come from.

Williams is arguably one of the best guest stars on , as it was always pretty entertaining whenever he was involved. His recent episode, which was Season 13’s “Irish Exits,” saw Frank worry about Lenny, as he was hiding the true reason he was in the city, which turned out to be that he has cancer. It’s possible that whatever the series chooses to do with Lenny, it might include the cancer storyline, even if they don’t kill him off. It’s unlikely that they’d recast him since Williams is so iconic and legendary, but fans may just have to wait for Season 14 to see if anything is done with it. Luckily, all episodes of Blue Bloods are streaming on Paramount+, so fans can always go back and rewatch his episodes whenever they feel like it.