One character often overlooked and not given enough credit in the hit police drama tv series Blue Bloods on CBS is Amy Carlson’s Linda Reagan.
A combination of talent, on-screen charisma, and a good story arc contributed to Carlson’s character becoming a fan favorite across seven seasons, first a recurring character, then credited as “also starring” to eventually gaining a main role in the drama.
But after season seven of Blue Blood, Amy Carlson’s Linda Reagan never returned to the series. So, why did Linda leave CBS’s Blue Bloods? Today, I’m going to try to paint a clear picture of the reasons why Amy Carlson left her job in that program. So let’s explore that together in this journey behind the scenes of Blue Bloods.
Linda’s Intense Story Arc In Season Seven Of Blue Bloods
Linda Reagan’s character story arc development is full of intense and shocking moments: She was shot in season 5 by a gang member in a case of mistaken identity, she was hospitalized and recovered. However, that same season Linda was mugged when doing some volunteer work, and due to that, her father-in-law tries to get her a gun, but she decided against it.
The reason why Amy Carlson left CBS’s Blue Bloods after seven seasons is a bit unclear. Still, we can paint a decent picture from the information that we do have. In the show, Danny Reagan does a good job busting down drug dealers, from rock slingers to big distributors, and that caused a big ire for the criminal antagonists within the story.
As an act of vengeance, the crime lords made a move on Danny Reagan’s family and as we saw on the seventh season’s finale, the drug dealers torched Danny’s house with Linda and their kids still inside with the intention of burning them alive.
However, Linda managed to escape the fire with her kids, which gave the audience a sigh of relief because, in Blue Bloods’ finales, most characters are killed off. Imagine the surprise of the audience when season eight of Blue Bloods kicked off but Amy Carlson’s character didn’t even show in the credits. Linda was nowhere to be seen.
Why Did Linda Leave Blue Bloods?
It would only be known to the audience that in some sort of lazy scriptwriting, Amy Carlson’s Linda Reagan character died on an undocumented helicopter accident between seasons seven and eight.
After seeing her gone from the show’s credits, the audience was led to believe that Amy Carlson was pursuing other acting opportunities. But there’s something more to Carlson’s departure from the CBS hit police show.
The Bridget Moynahan Issue
There seemed to be something fishy going on when Bridget Moynahan, who played Erin Reagan, and expressed to the press a few comments about her being disappointed about Amy’s decision to leave Blue Bloods. To which Carlson replied that Moynahan’s comments were inaccurate.
Amy Carlson went further to clarify things about her exit commenting that it is a normal practice within the industry for actors and actresses to have a conversation with their employers when their contracts are ending prior to the season ending.
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Amy Carlson Wasn’t Happy When Leaving Blue Bloods
One thing is clear: Amy Carlson wasn’t happy about leaving Blue Bloods, but she did so on her own choice. Moreover, she also wasn’t happy about the fact that the scriptwriters killed her character out of the blue and without telling her anything, erasing any possibility of a guest appearance in future season despite being separated from the police drama serial.
In any case, both fans and co-star Donny Wahlberg, who plays Linda’s widowed husband on screen have expressed their wish to see Amy Carlson’s character return even as a guest to the show in the form of a flashback or perhaps a ghost to give out some sort of sentimental character development for Donny’s story arc.
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