On Friday, October 18, "Blue Bloods" returned to CBS for the second half of its 14th and final season. One day earlier, cast members and showrunner Kevin Wade appeared at New York's PaleyFest to talk about the final season and share memories from the previous 13.

In front of a sold-out crowd, Tom Selleck, Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, Vanessa Ray, Len Cariou, and Marisa Ramirez joined Wade and moderator Vladimir Duthiers of CBS News for a panel discussion and an advanced screening of one of its final episodes. Duthiers also recently sat down with the cast at the Reagans' favorite meeting spot – their dinner table.

Among other subjects, the cast talked about filming all of those family dinners, and how to not lose their appetites during multiple takes. Moynahan would mash her potatoes, while Selleck buttered his dinner rolls. Broadway Stages has been there for every Sunday dinner with the Reagan family since 2010, providing facilities for nearly 300 episodes.

Cast members also spoke about what they will miss most about working on the show, with everyone agreeing that it will be the people they've come to know as family over the last decade and a half.

"I'll miss every one of these people. It's been a wonderful time for me," Cariou said. "I'm proud to have been part of this thing. It's a wonderful legacy."

Selleck echoed his sentiment, saying, "It’s hard to let go because coming to work was a joy."

Selleck also thanked CBS for supporting the series for so long, and he shared hope for broadcast television as networks struggle to compete with streaming services for viewers.

"I don't think everybody in the world wants to spend an hour on their remote control looking for what they might want to see," he said, adding that he appreciated that fans made it a point to tune in on Friday nights for the show.

This Friday, the sixth-to-last episode will air. CBS has announced that the episode titled "Bad to Worse" will see Frank (Selleck) intervening when tensions rise between the mayor and the fire commissioner. Erin (Moynahan) will be blindsided when Henry (Cariou) agrees to testify for the defense in a case she is prosecuting, and someone will discover human remains in a storage unit.

With only a handful of episodes remaining, Wahlberg recently joined Andy Cohen on SiriusXM to talk about the series finale. He promised "a lot of tears" but also "a hopeful, forward-thinking finale" that will make audiences happy.

We are so proud of the cast and crew for their success and the massive economic impact that the show has had on New York City's film and television industry. And we are especially honored to be their production partner-of-choice. If you need to catch up before the "Blue Bloods" finale in December, you can watch all episodes on Paramount+.