Blue Bloods star breaks silence on being recast for Boston Blue — and how Donnie Wahlberg told him

Blue Bloods' new era meant saying goodbye to a few beloved characters — and the actors behind them.

Boston Blue, starring Donnie Wahlberg as Danny Reagan once again, premiered on CBS October 17, and introduced Blue Bloods fans to a new family prominent in law enforcement, this time the Silvers, who are based in Boston, rather than in New York City like the Reagans. 

And though in addition to Danny Reagan, the spin-off does bring over the Sean Reagan (Danny's son) character over to Boston, original star Andrew Terraciano was replaced by Mika Amonsen.

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Andrew, finally breaking his silence on his role being recasted, told Us Weekly: "It's beautiful because you'll always remember every single line and every day that you had the opportunity to be that character," and maintained: "It doesn't mean for even a second that somebody else can't go and do something beautiful with it."

The 22-year-old actor added: "I got the joy of playing Sean, and I got to send him off into the world." His gig on Blue Bloods, which aired from 2010 to 2014, is his first and only major acting role. "Now somebody else gets that joy. We're both getting to show what we do and then send Sean off into the world."

Recalling the moment he learned of the recasting, Andrew, who was about seven years old when he was cast as Sean, said: "I had somebody call me — actually the day that I was graduating — and they had spoken to my mom and she called me [crying]. They were like, 'They might be looking for a different Sean."

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"Shortly after we got the news, Donnie called me. It was a really beautiful moment of getting to hear from an old friend but also somebody that you respect so much and have learned so much from," he further shared, and maintained: "We had such an amazing experience on Blue Bloods that when we talk we'll always be friends and family first. I'm happy that there are so many other people that now get to share in that amazing experience."

And though Andrew has yet to watch Boston Blue, which just received a season two renewal, he maintained his support for both the franchise and Donnie, who spearheaded the spin-off. 

"I'm going to give it the time and the respect that it deserves," he said. "[But in terms of returning in some capacity] I said it to Donnie on the phone. If he says the word, I'll be there. Not just with Blue Bloods or Boston Blue but with anything in life."

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Show creators Brandon Sonnier and Brandon Margolis have also opened up about their decision to recast Andrew with Mika. Speaking with TVLine, they said that for the spin-off, they were looking for "a slightly different version of Sean."

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"We wanted a character that feels familiar, an actor that does resemble the character that we watched grow up. But as you saw in the pilot, he has made some life changes and having joined the police force, he is really picking up that family mantle," he explained.

In the premiere episode of Boston Blue, Sean and Jonah Silver (Marcus Scribner), both rookie cops, are out with friends when they see a fire in the building, and in the process of trying to save people from it, Sean is injured. His hospital stay subsequently brings Danny over to Boston, where he plans to stay for as long as his son needs him.