Boston Blue: Everything We Know So Far About The Blue Bloods Offshoot
At least one Reagan family member's story will continue to be told when Boston Blue debuts on CBS.
Ordered to series on Feb. 18 — two months after Blue Bloods ended its well-watched, 14-season run — Boston Blue finds franchise vet Donnie Wahlberg reprising his role as veteran police detective Danny Reagan. This time, however, Danny will be policing the streets of Boston, alongside a new partner.
Who is this new partner, when will Boston Blue air, and who else will be seen on the series? Here, as they say, is everything we know so far....
7. Is Boston Blue a Blue Bloods Spinoff?
Technically, no.
Boston Blue since Day 1 has been described as a "universe expansion of the long-running top drama Blue Bloods," in part because its premise was born of an entirely unrelated project.
As Deadline reported, the only Donnie Wahlberg-led Blue Bloods offshoot that had been pitched (but got passed on) would have transplanted Danny Reagan to Texas.
Boston Blue showrunners Brandon Sonnier and Brandon Margolis, meanwhile, had independently developed a series that would follow a family of cops in Boston whose eldest daughter is partnered with a new transfer from LAPD. NYPD vet Danny is now that transfer.
6. What Is Boston Blue About?
In Boston Blue, Donnie Wahlberg's Danny Reagan takes a position with the Boston PD. Once in Boston, he is paired with detective Lena Silvers, the eldest daughter of a prominent law enforcement family.
5. Who From Blue Bloods Will Appear on Boston Blue?
Thus far, Donnie Wahlberg is the only Blue Bloods vet confirmed to appear on the spinoff universe expansion. "Danny's story will continue the Reagan family's. You can't have Danny without Reagans," Wahlberg said at a May press event.
That said, a second Blue Bloods character will appear, but with a different face.
Mika Amonsen — whose credits include TV's The Republic of Sarah and Hudson and Rex, as well as the 2023 slasher film Thanksgiving — will fill the series regular role of Sean Reagan, Danny's youngest son (of two).
Sean was originally played across all 14 seasons of Blue Bloods by Andrew Terraciano, in what was practically Terraciano's only acting role.
In Boston Blue, Sean has relocated to Boston to start his own new chapter, as a patrolman for the Boston PD — thus paving the way for his father's own major move. (READ MORE)
4. Who Else Has Been Cast on Boston Blue?
First and foremost, Sonequa Martin-Green (Star Trek: Discovery, The Walking Dead) will star alongside Donnie Wahlberg as Detective Lena Silver, the eldest daughter of a prominent law enforcement family.
Additionally, Ernie Hudson (NBC's Quantum Leap reboot) has been cast as Lena's grandfather, Reverend Peters, a renowned pastor of a historic Baptist church in Boston; Psych vet Maggie Lawson will play Boston PD Superintendent Sarah Silver, Lena's "strong-willed" and "decisive" stepsister; Gloria Reuben (ER) will play Mae Silver, family matriarch and Boston's District Attorney; and Marcus Scribner (black-ish) will play Jonah, Lena and Sarah's rookie cop brother.
3. Will Boston Blue Film in, You Know, Boston?
Fact is, precious few scripted TV series have ever made camp in Boston, with Robert Urich's mid-1980s crime drama, Spenser: For Hire, being one of the exceptions.
ABC' A Million Little Things (see photo above) was famously set in Boston (however devoid as it was of any accents) but filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Even Blue Bloods patriarch Tom Selleck's Massachusetts-based Jesse Stone TV movies were filmed in Nova Scotia.
Boston Blue will do some filming in Boston, but production will be based out of Toronto, Ontario (that's in Canada). Filming begins July 10.
2. Does Boston Blue Have a Premiere Date?
When CBS unveiled its fall schedule, there Boston Blue was, confirmed for a fall debut and calling Blue Bloods' old Fridays-at-10/9c time slot home. There, Boston Blue will lead out of Sheriff Country and that freshman spinoff's sire, Fire Country.
CBS typically sets fall premieres dates by mid-July, and TVLine will of course keep you posted on when, exactly, Boston Blue will debut.
1. Where Will You Be Able to Watch or Stream Boston Blue?
Like its ancestor Blue Bloods, Boston Blue will air on CBS, Friday nights at 10/9c, with episodes available for streaming the next day on Paramount+.
Want scoop on Boston Blue, or for any other TV show? Shoot an email to InsideLine@tvline.com, and your question may be answered via Matt's Inside Line!