Blue Bloods Fans Can Thank Tom Selleck For The Abigail Baker We Know And Love – Looper

For Abigail Hawk’s first episodes of “Blue Bloods,” Abigail Baker was little more than a cardboard cutout, with no last name and no real identity beyond her relationship to Frank Reagan. Hawk revealed while promoting the show that it was Tom Selleck who decided on her character’s name. 

“Originally, she did not have a last name. She did not have an age. She did not even have a gender. She did not have a race. She did not have an anything. She was either detective Mel or Melissa. So, no first name. Definitely not my first name. I got the role and about two to three episodes in Tom [Selleck] decided to change it to Abigail because he thought Melissa was too ordinary, which I guess is a compliment – so I’ll take it,” the actress told Starry Mag in 2021. 

For the last name Baker, Selleck himself cleared things through the legal department, according to Hawk. She said Selleck felt it was important for her character to have a name and background and thanks to some pushing from the actor, Abigail Baker became more than just background, she became a necessary character. 

“He obviously thought it was very important for me to have a last name since I was a person on the show. So, they gave me a full-fledged identity and that was all him,” Hawk said.