Hill Street Bluesrewrote the rules of television drama. Set inside an overworked urban precinct within an unnamed city,Steven Bochcoand Michael Kozoll's gritty series introduced a level of realism and moral complexity not previously attempted on American TV.
After premiering in 1981,Hill Street Bluesconsistently captured the chaotic, compassionate, and often heartbreaking reality of police work. Its overlapping storylines, cinema vérité style, and flawed but authentic characters helped define what modern prestige dramas would become.
Critics and audiences recognized its impact instantly. Over a seven-season run, the show became one of the most decorated of its era, earning awhopping 98 Emmy nominationsand winning 26.
More than three decades after its finale, the series remains a blueprint for truthful,character-driven storytelling. Read on asEntertainment Weeklycatches up with the stars ofHill Street Bluesto see where they are today.
Daniel J. Travanti (Frank Furillo)
Daniel J. Travantiwon two Emmysand a Golden Globe as the cool, calm, collected Captain Furillo, who commands the Hill Street Precinct with a tough but fair hand.
“He tolerated a great deal of goofy stuff. People would say he was so stern. I would say, ‘Have you ever seen the smiles? Check out the smiles. Don’t presume, because of some big impression, that you got the entire impression,’” Travantisaid of his signature character. “A guy who understood other people and was determined to do the right thing no matter what anybody thought, but treated people with dignity on every level. Never talked down to anybody.”
The Wisconsin native was already a well-traveled veteran by the time he landedHill Street, with nearly two decades of guest spots under his belt. Name a popular show from the ’60s and ’70s, he was probably on it.
During hisHill Streetyears, he squeezed in the feature-lengthAdam(1983) and landed yet another Emmy nomination. He later earned acclaim for his portrayal of Edward R. Murrow in the TV movieMurrow(1987).
The stage and screen veteran headlined the short-lived crime dramaMissing Persons.In recent years, he popped up on series such asBossandNCIS: Los Angeles.
Charles Haid (Andrew Renko)
Charles Haid played “cowboy” cop Andy Renko, the precinct’s token renegade who eventually gets serious about police work and climbs to the rank of detective. Haid was nominated for two Emmys for his performance.
In the years just beforehand, Haid appeared on the big screen in the Nick Nolte-led Vietnam thrillerWho’ll Stop the Rain(1978) and Ken Russell’s trippy classicAltered States(1980). In 2023,the actor admittedhe had no desire to focus on TV at the time — until he realized how revolutionaryHill Streetwould become.
“I had no intention of doing a series at all,” he said. “But I had a great time doing the pilot and when I saw it, I was overwhelmed. I thought, my god, this is exactly right. It was the best damned thing I ever saw.”
Haid pivoted to a directorial career once his series left the air. He occasionally resurfaced onscreen, including in Clive Barker’sNightbreed(1990) and on the NBC crime dramaThird Watch,but he’s primarily been behind the camera.
The San Francisco native won a DGA award forER— one of his four career nominations from the guild — and has helmed episodes ofNYPD Blue, Breaking Bad, Nip/Tuck,andSons of Anarchy, among many others. He also directed the big-screen Disney featureIron Will(1994).
Michael Warren (Bobby Hill)
Michael Warren played Bobby Hill, the formerly acclaimed boxer who becomes Renko’s partner after joining the force.
The Indiana native was a star basketball player before making the move to acting. He was a starter on two championship-winning teams during UCLA’s dynasty, playing alongside Lew Alcindor (a.k.a. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar).
His first main cast role was on the short-livedSierra, and he landed a string of guest and recurring roles on other series before finding a home onHill Street.
In subsequent years he found regular work on legal dramas, with appearances onIn the Heat of the Night,L.A. Law, andMurder One. But his resume runs the full gamut, from sitcoms likeA Different WorldandLiving Singleto cult classics such asBuffy the Vampire SlayerandSliders.
The veteran actor has four children, including producer Cash Warren, Jessica Alba’s ex-husband.
Veronica Hamel (Joyce Davenport)
Veronica Hamel’s Joyce Davenport is a hard-working, well-respected public defender who's in a relationship with Frank for the bulk of the series. The two get married late in season 3.
The actress earned five Emmy nominations for her performance. It was Hamel's breakthrough role after years of guest work on TV.
She went on to a big-screen starring role in Alan Alda’sA New Life(1988), alongside Alda and Ann-Margret, before returning toheadline a string of TV moviesthroughout the ’90s.
The Philadelphia native made a handful of appearances on Bochco’sPhillyand played the mother of Matthew Fox's Jack onLost.
Bruce Weitz (Mike Belker)
Eccentric undercover detective Mike Belker was played by Bruce Weitz, who earned six consecutive Emmy nominations for his work — including a win in 1984.
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The veteran actor has been a fixture on the small screen ever since, with regular gigs on theJamie Lee CurtissitcomAnything But Loveand the classic soapGeneral Hospital.
His guest work over the years includesThe West Wing,ER,Grey’s Anatomy,Dexter, andCSI. Most recently, the Connecticut native appeared in a season 2 episode ofFor All Mankind.
Since 1986, Weitz has been married to Vivian Davis, with whom he shares a son.
James B. Sikking (Howard Hunter)
James B. Sikking starred as Lt. Howard Hunter, the gung-ho leader of the precinct’s Emergency Action Team — a strong-headed but immensely capable policeman.
A longtime veteran of television going back to the early 1960s, Sikking enjoyed a long-awaited breakthrough inBlues, and followed it up with another major role as the title character’s father onDoogie Howser, M.D. He later reunited with Steven Bochco forBrooklyn South.
The actor’s big-screen career includedOrdinary People(1980),The Star Chamber(1983),Star Trek III: The Search for Spock(1984), andThe Pelican Brief(1993). One of his final roles was as Drew Barrymore’s father inFever Pitch(2005).
Sikking married cookbook author Florine Caplan in 1962. The couple shared two children. Hedied in 2024 at age 90due to complications from dementia.
Joe Spano (Henry Goldblume)
Hostage negotiator Henry Goldblume is Furillo’s confidante and a sure hand during the most dire of times at the precinct. Joe Spano made the part his own and earned an Emmy nomination for his work.
Like manyHill Streetveterans, Spano has rejoined the Bochco fold in the years since. He was a regular on the first season ofMurder Oneand had a two-seasonNYPD Bluearc late in its run.
The longtime stage veteran has long had a second home on television, with appearances ranging fromThe X-FilestoTouched by an Angel. For over two decades, he’s played arecurring role onNCIS.
On the big screen, he’s had small roles inApollo 13(1995) and a handful of films directed byHill Streetvet Gregory Hoblit, namelyPrimal Fear(1996),Hart’s War(2002), andFracture(2007). Most recently, he booked a voice role in Pixar’sHoppers(2026).
Spano married his wife, Joan Zerrien, in 1980. The couple share two daughters.
Taurean Blacque (Neal Washington)
Taurean Blacque played undercover detective Neal Washington, the cool-cat partner to loose-cannon J.D. LaRue.
The actor followed his Emmy-nominatedHill Streetturn with a voice role inOliver & Company(1988) and a run on the soap operaGenerations. He later went back to his detective roots on The WB’sSavannah.
The New Jersey native became a prominent adoption advocate, ultimately adopting 10 kids of his own, in addition to two biological children. Blacquedied in 2021at the age of 82 after a brief illness.
Kiel Martin (J.D. LaRue)
Kiel Martin played J.D. LaRue, the spirited and resourceful detective whose knack for the job is often sidelined by his womanizing, hard-drinking habits.
The veteran actor, who had a supporting role inThe Panic in Needle Park(1971) and played the lead in exploitation classicTrick Baby(1972), had a string of TV law enforcement roles under his belt before hisHill Streetcasting.
The Pittsburgh native continued to specialize in crime dramas afterward, with guest appearances onL.A. Law,Miami Vice, andMurder, She Wrote. He was also a longtime stage veteran.
Martin died in 1990 at age 46 due to complications from lung cancer. He was survived by one daughter, from his marriage to Dean Martin’s daughter, Claudia.
Betty Thomas (Lucy Bates)
The sole female in the Hill Street precinct, Betty Thomas’ Lucy Bates is a strong-willed and opinionated figure who often keeps her partner, Joe Coffey, in line.
Thomas was Emmy-nominated for every season of the show and took home the prize in 1985. But even after her acting success continued with her acclaimed role as the villainous Velda PlenderinTroop Beverly Hills(1989), she segued to a career behind the camera.
She has helmed such films asThe Brady Bunch Movie(1995), the Howard Stern biopicPrivate Parts(1997), Eddie Murphy’sDr. Dolittle(1998) remake, and the Sandra Bullock-led rehab dramedy28 Days(2000).
More recently, she had a box-office smash withAlvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel(2009), and helmed three episodes of Netflix’sGrace and Frankie.
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