‘Blue Bloods’ Offshoot ‘Boston Blue’ Casts ‘Ghostbusters’ Legend Ernie Hudson in Major Role

The Boston Blue cast just welcomed its latest addition! Ghostbusters star Ernie Hudson will be portraying a pivotal character in the upcoming Blue Bloods offshoot series.

Ernie, 79, will be playing Reverend Peters, “a renowned pastor of an historic Baptist church in Boston. An open-minded, welcoming man that is comfortable in all traditions, he is happy to preside at his church’s traditional Sunday Baptist service,” per Deadline.

He is the father of “Mae Silver, Boston’s district attorney, and grandfather of detective Lena Silver, superintendent Ashley Silver, and rookie patrol cop, Isaac Silver,” the outlet reported.

This family dynamic certainly sounds a lot like the Reagans, the beloved fictional law enforcement family led by Len Cariou and Tom Selleck for more than a decade on CBS. The mothership series came to an end in December 2024, and Boston Blue was announced just a few months later. The series is set in Boston and will begin filming this summer.

Ernie will be a series regular on the highly-anticipated police drama series, which serves as a series expansion of Blue Bloods.

The Michigan native previously portrayed Winston Zeddemore throughout the Ghostbusters franchise. Additionally, he starred as Warden Leo Glynn in Oz from 1997 to 2003. His other acting credits include 10-8: Officers on Duty, St. Elsewhere, Franklin & Bash, Modern Family, Hot Streets and L.A.’s Finest.

It was previously announced that Sonequa Martin-Green would be playing Lena, Donnie Wahlberg’s character Danny Reagan’s new partner at the Boston PD. Sonequa, 40, expressed excitement about starring in the series alongside Donnie, 55, who was a cast member on Blue Bloods for 14 seasons.

“I know that it’s going to provide something that people need. I think it’s going to be optimism and hope and family, and I think it’s going to be good for people. I really do,” the Walking Dead alum told Extra on May 7 of the offshoot. “Blue Bloods was so good, and we love the Reagans so much, and for good reason and hopefully we’ll love this new family that we get to meet through Danny’s eyes and through his perspective, and I hope that the legacy continues and I’m so grateful.”

Similarly, at a CBS press conference, Sonequa said she was ready to keep the important elements of family and legacies alive in Boston Blue.

“We have all loved the Reagans for so long, and I feel that we’ll love the Silvers too,” she said.

“There are so many law enforcement families in this country. There’s not just the Reagans. They’re in every state, every city, every town, everywhere, and there are other families around that have stories to tell too,” Donnie added. “Danny’s story will continue the Reagan family. You can’t have Danny without Reagans — there’ll be connective tissue. But we’re also going to get to discover a new family and carry on the tradition of telling their stories.”

The first episode of Boston Blue, set to air in fall 2025, has already nabbed director Anthony Hemingway. He is a Golden Globe winner, whose previous works include The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and The Wire.