Why Bridget Moynahan Almost Passed Up Her Role On Blue Bloods

If Bridget Moynahan had remained true to her original ambitions, she probably would have been performing her nth root canal as we speak. Yup, it's hard to wrap your head around it, but the actor had aspirations of becoming a dentist way back when. However, lots of things in her life ended up diverging from her initial plans, including starring in "Blue Bloods," a project she wasn't originally interested in joining since she had other priorities at the time.

Moynahan's career in Hollywood is almost entirely serendipitous. Her introduction to the industry was through modeling, a path she hadn't even envisioned for herself, only stumbling into it thanks to a friend. "In senior year of high, a friend of mine wanted to model so I took her to the local John Casablanca Modeling Center," she told The Imagista. And acting? She tried her hand at it when someone else suggested she try acting school. "I'd go to work for modeling during the day then take acting classes at night," she recalled. "I attended classes... for about three years and worked on plays before I started auditioning." As luck would have it, Moynahan ended up bagging big projects right from the get-go, including "Sex and the City" and "Coyote Ugly," kickstarting her acting career with a bang.

Among the roles that solidified Moynahan's place in the entertainment industry was that of attorney Erin Reagan in the CBS drama "Blue Bloods." It's hard to imagine the show without her, but apparently, she was initially hesitant to join the cast because she was raising a child.

Committing to filming a TV show is a huge undertaking for any actor. It involves being away from home for prolonged periods and limiting your bandwidth to a small pool of projects due to the major time commitment the work demands. It's not surprising why Bridget Moynahan initially expressed skepticism about joining "Blue Bloods," especially since she was doting on Jack, the son she shares with ex-Tom Brady, who was only a toddler at the time. 

According to Donnie Wahlberg, who plays Moynahan's brother on the show, he practically had to beg her to come on board. "She was worried it was going to shoot in Canada, and she had a young child and didn't want to have to commute," he told Watch!, adding that he had to unleash his persuasive skills to get her to agree. "I said, 'I guarantee you, we won't go to Canada... Because Tom Selleck is never going to do a show in Canada. Knowing him, he will fight to do it in New York, because he wants it to be authentic." And true enough, the show ended up being filmed right in the Big Apple, letting Moynahan and Jack do away with tiring commutes.

Perhaps it also helped that she's successfully co-parenting with Brady. "Tom and I made a decision to raise a child together and we both found partners that not only supported us in raising that child, but also loved our child as if he was their own," she told People. "I don't think you can ask for more than that. My son is surrounded by love."

Despite her initial reservations about joining the cast of "Blue Bloods," Bridget Moynahan managed to stay with the show from the beginning right until its exit from the airwaves in 2024. Moynahan was a core part of the cast for all its 14 seasons, and even got a chance to direct some episodes. And while she could have left the series at some point in search of greener pastures, the actor loved the stability it gave and the fact that her co-workers had become family.

"We know how lucky we are to be on this show. It doesn't come around that often... My family is here," she told Glamour. "I saw a few people — friends of mine — who had gone to LA and were just kind of chasing the next job for a while. I didn't want to get lost in LA. I had New York, and I knew New York. I had that comfort."

With "Blue Bloods" over, Moynahan is committed to just being a mom to Jack and hopefully picking up more producing and directing gigs, which she's passionate about now. "I think until my son graduates from high school, I'm not going anywhere," she shared with Parade. "So I have high hopes that I'll be working here. ... [I'll] keep looking at things to produce and direct. That's interesting and challenging to me."