‘Blue Bloods’: Joe Hill Was Almost Killed off by Writers in the Season 11 Finale
Blue Bloods Season 11 had an explosive ending. History almost repeated itself because Joe Hill (Will Hochman) was in danger. The show’s showrunner admitted he considered killing off the character, but this is why it didn’t happen.
‘Blue Bloods’ Season 11 showed Joe Hill on the run
Joe Hill didn’t meet with the Reagans for a while. “The End” showed what he’s been up to. Joe went undercover to investigate criminals who were illegally moving guns. He returned to Manhattan and accidentally ran into Danny (Donnie Wahlberg), who was about to arrest him.
Joe’s cover gets blown after this, and he has to go on the run. All of the Reagans work together to try to get him home safely in that episode and in “Justifies the Means.” There were multiple moments where the criminals caught up to Joe and almost killed him.
It was obvious the situation reminded the family of what happened to Joe Reagan. They felt like they failed him and couldn’t believe they might fail his son too. Some fans were angry at the thought of losing the new character so quickly, and they almost did.
Joe Hill was almost killed off by ‘Blue Bloods’ writers in the season 11 finale
Joe narrowly escaped getting killed in the finale multiple times. Writers did think about killing off the new character.
“Considered it, but shut it down,” showrunner Kevin Wade told TV Insider. “It does echo the season finale of our very first season where all the Reagans band together to find their brother and son Joe Reagan’s killers and bring them to justice.”
Why didn’t the writers do it? “We circled back with that obviously with his son, but wanted it to be a satisfying ending and really like Will Hochman and certainly didn’t want to kill off that particular golden goose,” he explained.
“We considered it for a second and then came to our senses and thought, let’s just tell a great story and have them be able to pull him out,” he added. This ending does allow the family to have some closure from Joe Reagan’s death. The guilt over Joe’s death has affected Frank (Tom Selleck), although he’s great at hiding it.
It also helps keep the dinner table looking a little more full. Nicky (Sami Gayle) and Jack (Tony Terraciano) left for college, and their absence has been felt.
The characters did previously return for one episode to meet Joe, but he decided not to go to dinner. Hopefully, those characters will meet next season. There are also more possibilities for Joe’s future.
It looks like Joe’s back to being a detective. He previously helped Danny and Jamie (Will Estes) with their cases this season. They make a good team and could work together again in season 12.
