A Fan-Favorite Law & Order Character Is Returning In New Season
The return Dick Wolf's hit Law & Order is about to get a lot better as one of its greatest characters is set to return.
This article is more than 2 years old
Fans who were disappointed that Anthony Anderson wouldn’t be returning for the 22nd season of Law & Order will be glad to know that at least one fan-favorite character will be sticking it out a little longer. Deadline recently reported that Sam Waterston should be on for at least another year as District Attorney Jack McCoy. This will mark Waterston’s 18th season on Law & Order, giving him the rare distinction of being the longest-tenured cast member for the original show.
The relaunch of the original Law & Order has brought Dick Wolf’s flagship series back to the airwaves, making fans of the series very happy to see the character they love back in action. Law & Order is the one that started it all, showing two teams working together — the detectives that bring in the perps of a crime and the lawyers who prosecute them. Waterston, as DA Jack McCoy, represents the other half of this formula, and his older DA character has served as a wide mentor role for the newer lawyers in the series. The show has spawned several successful spin-offs, with the still-running Law & Order: SVU being one of the most well-known and beloved.
Currently, Law & Order has three shows from the franchise on the air. The original show, Law & Order: SVU, and the newest addition, Law & Order: Organized Crime. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, often shortened as SVU, stars the fan-favorite Mariska Hargitay as the NYPD Captain Oliva Benson. Her unit investigates sexually motivated crimes and crimes against children and the elderly. The series is currently renewed up to the 24th season. Notably, SVU has aired over 500 episodes and 23 seasons, giving it the distinct honor of being the longest-running primetime US live-action series in television history. Law & Order: Organized Crime features the fan-favorite Christopher Meloni, who previously starred as Elliot Stabler in SVU. The new series follows Stabler as he organizes mobsters and other crime organizations. Law & Order: Organized Crime has two seasons in the books with a new season set to air in the Fall of 2022.
It’s unclear how many more seasons we’ll get of Law & Order, but as long as the show gets the viewers and the ratings, it should be for the foreseeable future. Sam Waterston may not stick around for the entire run of the series, but at the very least we’ll be seeing him return for the next season. In addition to Sam Waterston, the new relaunch of Law & Order stars Camryn Manheim, Hugh Dancy, and Odelya Halevi. As mentioned, Anthony Anderson will not be back for the next season. This news wasn’t a huge surprise, as the actor had only signed on for one new season to help bring the series back to the airwaves, and he never had plans to continue coming back for more. The finale of the 21st season featured Anderson and his partner investigating the murder of an off-duty police officer. It also featured Olivia Benson as a guest star. We should be getting the next season on NBC in the Fall of 2022.
