Tom Selleck’s Six Most Memorable Roles (In His Own Words)

Magnum, P.I.
GettyImages
Tom Selleck in the original Magnum, P.I. The series is being rebooted by CBS.

Still savoring his latest hit as the star of CBS’ Blue Bloods, Tom Selleck talks us through six of his most memorable performances.

The Sacketts (1979)
Selleck played one of three brothers in the Louis L’Amour TV movie. “I gained a mentor in [costar] Ben Johnson and from then on, I knew I belonged in Western movies.”

Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images

Magnum, P.I. (1980-88)
“I risked my career by initially turning down the pilot because the character was too perfect. Then they rewrote it and he was flawed–just how I like it.”

GettyImages

Three Men and a Baby (1987)
“This changed my life. My first two movies were very successful, but critics were still saying, ‘Can he really make it in movies?’ That stopped when Three Men was No. 1 in the world.”

TOUCHSTONE PICTURES/ Courtesy of Everett Collection

Quigley Down Under (1990)
He starred as a Montana sharpshooter in the Australian outback. “I loved the script but wondered if the audience would accept me as this iconic figure.”

©MGM/Courtesy Everett Collection

Friends (1996-2000)
Friends was my first major sitcom role. It was still growing and I knew it was really big when TV Guide Magazine put Courteney and me–Monica and Richard–on the cover!”

NBC

In & Out (1997)
“It was fun to play the guy you love to hate or hate to love. Peter brings the movie’s message to Howard, Kevin Kline’s character, but he’s also an unscrupulous TV reporter.”

PARAMOUNT PICTURES/Courtesy of Everett Collection