Honestly, it’s been a weird year for anyone who spent fourteen seasons watching the Reagan family pass the mashed potatoes. You’d think that after the massive series finale "End of Tour" aired in December 2024, the dust would have settled. It hasn't. Not even close. If you’ve been following blue bloods in the news, you know the conversation has shifted from "Save the Show" to "Wait, is this new thing actually good?"
CBS made a massive gamble. They cut the main show because of its ballooning budget—let's be real, Tom Selleck and a huge ensemble cast don't come cheap—and replaced it with a leaner, meaner spinoff called Boston Blue.
It’s January 2026 now. The results are in. And they are kinda shocking.
The Boston Blue Factor: Is Danny Reagan Carrying the Torch?
When Boston Blue premiered in October 2025, the fan base was split. Some people felt like it was a betrayal to move Donnie Wahlberg’s character, Danny Reagan, away from the 1PP (One Police Plaza) and up to Beantown. But the ratings just hit the wire, and the show is a certified monster hit. It’s pulling in around 8 million viewers a week.
That’s actually higher than the final season of the original show in some metrics.
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The premise is basically this: Danny relocates to Boston to join their PD, partly motivated by a near-death experience his son Sean (now played by Mika Amonsen) had. He’s paired up with Detective Lena Silver, played by Sonequa Martin-Green. Her family is basically the Boston version of the Reagans—a "police royalty" dynasty led by a patriarch played by Ernie Hudson.
Why fans are talking about it now
- The Sean Recast: People are still debating Mika Amonsen taking over for Andrew Terraciano. It's a different vibe, but it works for an adult Sean who’s actually on the force.
- The Early Renewal: CBS just greenlit Season 2 of Boston Blue for the 2026-2027 season. They didn't even wait for the Season 1 finale.
- The Cross-Pollination: We've already seen Bridget Moynahan (Erin Reagan) pop up. The creators, Brandon Sonnier and Brandon Margolis, recently confirmed that Marisa Ramirez’s character, Maria Baez, is coming back for a multi-episode arc in the second half of this season.
Where is Tom Selleck?
This is the big question in every blue bloods in the news report. Frank Reagan was the soul of the original series. Seeing the show continue without him feels like a Sunday dinner with no turkey.
Tom Selleck hasn't been shy about his frustration. He recently switched talent agencies, moving to UTA, which sparked a ton of rumors. Some insiders say he’s looking for a way back into the "Reagan-verse," while others say he’s focusing on the 10th Jesse Stone movie, The Last Watch, which is reportedly in development for a 2026 release.
There's a lot of "he said, she said" regarding a Frank Reagan cameo. The producers of Boston Blue say the door is open. Selleck has been quiet. But with the show's massive success, the pressure for a "Commissioner meets Superintendent" summit is reaching a fever pitch.
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The Prequel Rumors are Heating Up
You might have heard whispers about a show set in the 80s or 90s. This isn't just fan fiction anymore.
With CBS being so "spinoff-happy" lately, there is real talk about a prequel series. Imagine a young Frank Reagan navigating the crack epidemic era of NYC while a young Danny and Joe are just kids. It would solve the budget issue because they’d hire younger, cheaper actors, but they could have Tom Selleck provide the narration—sort of like a police-procedural version of Young Sheldon.
Fans specifically want to see Joe Reagan. The "ghost" of the family who died before the pilot episode started. Getting to actually know him would add so much weight to the 14 years of storytelling we've already watched.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Cancellation
A lot of folks think the show was cancelled because people stopped watching. That is 100% false.
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Blue Bloods was still winning its time slot on Friday nights right up until the end. The problem was the "license fee." As a show gets older, the cast gets raises. The production costs go up. Eventually, even a hit show becomes too expensive for a network to keep profitable unless the studio owns 100% of the backend.
CBS basically decided to "reboot" the franchise at a lower price point. It’s cold, corporate logic, but looking at the 2026 ratings, it seems to have worked for their bottom line.
How to Keep Up With the Reagans Today
If you’re feeling the void, here’s how the landscape looks right now in early 2026:
- Watch Boston Blue: It airs Fridays at 10 p.m. on CBS. It’s the closest thing we have to the original spirit.
- Streaming: Every single episode of the original 14 seasons is on Paramount+. The data shows people are bingeing the old "family dinner" scenes more than ever.
- The Spinoff Watch: Keep an eye out for official announcements regarding the "NYC Prequel." If Boston Blue keeps its Top 10 status, CBS will likely pull the trigger on a second expansion by the fall upfronts.
- Selleck’s Next Move: Follow the Jesse Stone production news. If that movie does well, it proves Selleck still has the "bankability" to lead a new series, potentially even a Blue Bloods limited revival.
The Reagan legacy isn't dead; it's just moving north. Whether you're a die-hard Frank fan or you're following Danny to Boston, the "Blue Bloods" brand is officially a franchise now. It's not just a show anymore. It's a universe.
Stay tuned for the February sweeps—that’s when the Baez/Danny reunion is supposed to drop, and honestly, that’s the closure a lot of us have been waiting for since 2024.