Donnie Wahlberg hinted that the Blue Bloods spinoff, Boston Blue, is all about starting fresh.
Wahlberg, 55, took to Instagram on Tuesday, July 8, to share a photo from the spinoff’s first table read, which he captioned, “A new chapter 💙.” The actor, who plays Danny, tagged his costar Sonequa Martin-Green as the cast prepares to finally start filming the highly anticipated series.
According to Wahlberg’s photo of the pilot script, the episode is written by Brandon Sonnier and Brandon Margolis and directed by Anthony Hemingway, all of whom were not previously part of the Blue Bloods franchise.
Blue Bloods found a strong fanbase when it premiered on CBS in 2010. After a 14-season run, viewers were not ready to say goodbye to New York Police Commissioner Frank Reagan (Tom Selleck) and his children: Danny (Wahlberg), Erin (Bridget Moynahan) and Jamie (Will Estes).
CBS, however, had different plans when speculation began that Blue Bloods could end amid the cast and producers agreeing to take a 25 percent pay cut. Wahlberg exclusively told Us Weekly in April 2023 that he hoped to see Blue Bloods achieve the same level of success as Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
“I mean, Ice-T and Mariska Hargitay have been going for gosh, so many years, and we hope to last as long as they have,” he shared at the time. “One of the things I’ve done is I try to just stay very present in each episode and take each script that comes my way and say, ‘OK, what’s gonna happen now? You know, what am I doing this week?’ And kind of find the journey in that particular episode and not get caught up in what’s gonna happen next year, what’s gonna happen in two years.”
Wahlberg noted that he wasn’t opposed to the idea of a Blue Bloods spinoff, joking, “Danny and Erin became private Investigators and moved to Hawaii, but that was too close to [Selleck’s iconic 1980s series] Magnum, P.I., so we didn’t want to do that one.”
After Blue Bloods came to an end in December 2024, Wahlberg scored a continuation with CBS’ Boston Blue. The show was ordered straight to series and will expand the Blue Bloods universe as Danny “takes on a position” with the Boston P.D.
“So excited to carry on the tradition, to share so many surprises, to answer some unanswered questions and to welcome all of you — to #BostonBlue!” Wahlberg wrote via Instagram in March. “The next chapter in the #BlueBloods legacy begins. I can’t wait. See you CBS fall! 💙❤️🫡🙏🏼.”Boston Blue also stars Marcus Scribner, Gloria Reuben, Ernie Hudson and Maggie Lawson. As for possible Blue Bloods cameos, Wahlberg recently weighed in on possible crossovers, telling Fox News Digital in June, “The viewers are saying, ‘How do we keep going with a Blue Bloods spinoff without the whole family?’ And I share that. How do we do that, right?”
Wahlberg hinted that there have been conversations about navigating how to introduce Boston Blue while still honoring the Blue Bloods legacy.
“Now, it’s just Danny going to this new world, but I can’t say a lot about it — but I can say, if he’s a Reagan, it will never be just Danny,” he added. “There’ll always be a Reagan a phone call away And the traditions that the Reagans have, Danny wouldn’t abandon those traditions.”
