Amy Carlson Would Have Written Linda Reagan's Death Very Differently Than the Show Did

TV

Amy Carlson was a 'Blue Bloods' cast member for seven seasons. The death of her character, Linda, nearly upended Danny Reagan's life, and while her character is mentioned often, she's never returned to the cast.

Published on August 10, 2023

Amy Carlson spent seven seasons as a member of the Blue Bloods cast. She portrayed Linda Reagan in the police procedural and brought an outside perspective to the Reagan family dinners. Then suddenly, the character was killed off. Linda died between season 7 and season 8, with the season 8 opener grappling with her demise. The odd choice not to show her death has bothered Blue Bloods fans for years. Apparently, it bothered Carlson, too. 

Linda Reagan was killed off of ‘Blue Bloods’ because Amy Carlson did not renew her contract 

Blue Bloods fans never suspected that Linda Reagan would be killed off between seasons, but that’s precisely what happened. When season 8 of the series opened, fans learned that Linda had been killed in a helicopter crash. Her death was not shown. Instead, the season opener dealt primarily with Danny contemplating retirement because of Linda’s passing and his guilt. 

So, why exactly was Linda killed off? Simply put, Carlson opted not to renew her contract. In an interview with Deadline, Carlson said that her contract ended with the season 7 finale. She opted not to continue with the show. Carlson didn’t delve into the specifics but did note that the production team knew she would be departing ahead of the season’s ending. 

She did not know when she opted to leave the cast of Blue Bloods that her character would be killed off, nor was she aware of how the Blue Bloods team planned to explain her absence. If given the chance, Carlson would have had it done differently. 

How would Amy Carlson have killed off the character? 

Carlson was just as unsatisfied with how Linda’s story ended as fans were. While she doesn’t have a specific plotline for how she thinks her character should have been written off of Blue Bloods, she feels strongly that it should have happened on screen. Carlson sat down with Deadline in 2017 and discussed Linda’s story.

Carlson said she isn’t certain how she would have killed Linda. Still, she thinks showing her death would have made the entire storyline better. She told the publication, “I guess It would’ve been nice for the fans to see her demise, to be a participant in it, and that was my vote for the fans.” Despite knowing she feels fans deserved a way to grieve, Carlson never had a scenario in mind.  

While not loving what Blue Bloods did with her character, she was not against returning as part of the cast. She told Deadline that she would be happy to return for flashback-style scenes. When she spoke to the publication, she had yet to be approached about it. The further the show gets from Linda’s helicopter crash, the less likely it seems that a flashback scene would be necessary. Still, you never know. Blue Bloods is set to enter its 14th season this fall. 

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