Blue Bloods may be in the rearview mirror, but the franchise lives on thanks to the upcoming CBS spinoff Boston Blue. The spinoff will see Danny Reagan (Donnie Wahlberg) move from New York to, you guessed, Boston, and start a new chapter with their police department. Now, it seems, Reagan will be joined by a beloved comedy star.
Deadline confirmed that Ernie Hudson will be joining the cast of Boston Blue. The actor will play Reverend Peters, the patriarch of a notable Boston family known as the Silvers. Peters is father to Boston District Attorney Mae Silver, as well as grandfather to Lena Silver (Sonequa Martin-Green), Reagan's new detective partner.
Ernie Hudson will play a Boston Reverend
This is a huge part for Hudson, especially given how much emphasis the Blue Bloods franchise puts on family and traditional values. Donnie Wahlberg recently told TV Line that one of the main goals of Boston Blue is to explore new families, and tell new stories from a similarly family-focused viewpoint."[We're] going to get to discover a new family," Wahlberg told the outlet. "And carry on the tradition of telling their stories and still telling the Reagan stories."
Deadline's description of Hudson's character suggests that there will several more members of the Silver family to meet. Not only will fans get to know the aforementioned Mae and Lena, but rookie cop Isaac Silver and Superintendent Ashley Silver as well. The people cast in these roles have not been announced yet.
Ernie Hudson is best known for his role as Winston in the Ghostbusters franchise. He was an original member, and the only actor to appear in every subsequent installment besides Dan Aykroyd. Hudson has also appeared in seminal cult hits like The Crow, The Basketball Diaries and Miss Congeniality. He may be a familar face on the big screen, but Hudson has also notched quite a few appearances on the small screen as well.
Hudson previously appeared on Law & Order
The actor made his TV debut in 1977, and has since appeared on shows as varied as St. Elsewhere, Oz, ER and Bones. He has also ventured into the Dick Wolf universe on occasion, with guest spots on Law & Order in 2009 and 2010. Hudson even performed on a special Ghostbusters themed episode of The Masked Singer in 2025.
We can't wait to see what Hudson brings to the table as Reverend Peters, especially given the power he holds over both the Silver family and his community. It'll also be interesting to see whether he gets along with Reagan, given the detective's tendency to bump heads with people.
Boston Blue is set to premiere during the fall season on CBS.