While Andrew Terraciano was a welcome presence as Sean Reagan on Blue Bloods, his appearances became increasingly symbolic and were mostly limited to the customary Reagan family Sunday night dinner scenes. Aside from a few scattered incidents of juvenile delinquency, Sean’s run in the series was fairly uneventful. In retrospect, the most important event featuring Sean was when he discovered the existence of Joe Hill, a New York police detective who is revealed to be the biological son of Frank Reagan’s murdered police officer son, Joe Reagan, in the Season 10 finale.

Terraciano’s replacement as Sean in Boston Blue, Mika Amonsen, is a Canadian actor who previously perfected a thick Boston accent for his performance as obnoxious teenager Lonnie in the 2023 horror film Thanksgiving, in which Lonnie is a key instigator in the Black Friday riot scene that triggers the ensuing bloodbath. Unlike Terraciano’s Sean, who expressed an interest in becoming a firefighter on Blue Bloods but was otherwise undecided on a career path, Amonsen’s Sean is passionate about being a cop while insistent on building a career on his own merits, thus explaining his decision to move from New York to Boston.

Indeed, just as Sean’s deciion to relocate to Boston provides insight into Danny’s decision to follow his example, this suggests that Danny and Sean’s relationship, as father and son and as fellow cops, is poised to reach a much deeper emotional level than it ever did on Blue Bloods. This comes despite Danny’s wife and Sean’s mother, Linda, being killed off due to actress Amy Carlson’s departure from Blue Bloods over a contract dispute. This newly defined father-son relationship seems reminiscent of Danny’s relationship with his father, with a notable difference being that Danny doesn’t hold the rank of police commissioner.

How Many Other ‘Blue Bloods’ Characters Should Appear in ‘Boston Blue?’

While there’s a clear nexus between the creation of Boston Blue and the presence of its star, Boston native Donnie Wahlberg, longtime viewers have been baffled as to how and why Wahlberg’s Danny Reagan could leave New York, and his fabled law enforcement family, and move to Boston. To the degree that Danny’s move is motivated by his youngest son Sean’s decision to join the Boston Police Department, this still leaves a gaping question regarding how and when Danny’s other family members will appear on the new show, if they appear at all.

This includes Danny’s oldest son, Jack, who was played on Blue Bloods by Andrew Terraciano’s older brother, Tony, over the course of 14 seasons. While Sean was mostly a recurring character on Blue Bloods throughout its run, Tony was a main cast member until Season 9, when Tony, like Jack, decided to break away from the show to attend college. Following Season 10, in which Jack appears in two episodes, Tony, who eventually attended medical school, only appears in a single episode in each of the show’s remaining four seasons, including the series finale.

‘Boston Blue’ Must Establish Its Own Identity Separate From ‘Blue Bloods’

In addition to providing a compelling explanation for Danny Reagan’s seemingly incomprehensible decision to leave his beloved New York for Boston, the biggest challenge that Boston Blue must conquer to be successful is to validate the controversial decision by CBS to end Blue Bloods after 14 wonderful seasons, ostensibly to make way for the spin-off. This will be exacerbated by CBS’s decision to put Boston Blue in Blue Bloods’ former time slot, along with the original show’s ubiquitous presence in reruns and syndication.

Despite Donnie Wahlberg’s invaluable presence, Boston Blue will struggle to appeal to both longtime fans, who will clamor for appearances and mentions of other Blue Bloods characters, and entirely new viewers, who are likely to initially perceive the blandly titled Boston Blue as being just another big-city police show. Moreover, Wahlberg’s considerable influence over Boston Blue has raised questions about whether the spin-off was driven by a creative vision or simply his desire to star in a series set in his hometown. Of course, as Wahlberg has pointed out, it’s a relatively short trip between Boston and New York. Boston Blue ​​​​​​is set for release on Oct. 17, 2025.