https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLAoM6Oaaqs
Law & Order is back for its 21st season on NBC tonight at 8p with all-new episodes after a 10-year hiatus. Although, it doesn’t feel like it has been that long because it is always on in syndication.
Recently, the cast, including Sam Waterstone, Anthony Anderson, Camryn Manheim, and Executive Producer Rick Eid talked about the return on the police procedural at the NBC TCA Winter Press Day. Below are six things they had to say about the show coming back home.
How long has the revival been in the works?
SAM WATERSTON: Yeah. He was talking about it five years ago too, and I don’t think he’s ever stopped talking about it. One of the reasons that we’re back is because of his persistence and determination and his complete conviction that it was a terrible mistake to stop in the first place.
The other reason that we’re coming back, though, I think is because we stopped making the shows, but the audience never stopped watching them. So the audience’s persistent appetite for “Law & Order” is a major reason why we’re back. So thanks to them.
Was it hard for Anthony Anderson to sign on?
ANTHONY ANDERSON: Well, for me it felt like no time had passed at all. Just, you know, getting the call from Dick and having the conversation with him. Actually, I called Dick once I found out the show was coming back, and he was excited to hear from me, to hear that I would be interested in doing it. And returning to the streets of New York, returning to our sound stages and that squad room and donning that badge, Badge No. 1901, was just, like, sitting in a well worn saddle. It gripped you just right and was comfortable. So it was fairly easy for me.
How L&O is full circle for Camryn Manheim
CAMRYN MANHEIM: Well, you know, my first job out of NYU was on “Law & Order” back in 1991, 30 years ago. It’s hard to believe. I came back as three different characters on “Law & Order” through the years. And someone was talking about this before. It was a badge of honor to be able to be in an off Broadway play or a Broadway play and say that you’d been on “Law & Order” and then how many times you’d been on “Law & Order.” And I still have the programs that “I want to thank my mom,” dah, dah, dah, “‘Law & Order’ three times.” And so this is a huge full circle for me to come back and play Kate Dixon.
Has the precinct changed?
CAMRYN MANHEIN: I do want to say that everything has been updated and very current in terms of storyline except for the precinct. It is still that same old precinct. Nothing is updated. I mean, the phones are still from, you know, Edison’s time. So it just feels like you are home, you know, for me.
How will Law & Order be different than Law & Order: SVU?
RICK EID: You know, I think we’re going to try our best to reflect the world we live in now. I mean, “Law & Order”‘s been around for a long time, but 2022 is a unique moment in time and our stories and our characters reflect what’s happening in society. And I think that, you know, the way people police is a lot different now than it was, you know, ten years ago, even two years ago. And I think the same goes with the District Attorney’s Office. I think the way people prosecute cases and try cases is a lot different and they’re aware of certain things they weren’t aware of before. So I think it will just reflect that new reality.
What does Anthony Anderson think is the magic of the show?
ANTHONY ANDERSON: I also think the magic of the show is that you never really know or get into these characters’ personal lives, which allows you to pick up this show at any given moment, at any given time no matter where you are and still be that much invested in this show and still not be lost because it’s not so much about us. It’s about the crime. It’s about solving it. It’s about moving it along and bringing law and order to the world. I think that is part of the magic of what Dick Wolf created.
