Law & Order is heading into Season 26 with a familiar situation: another lead departure and a high-profile replacement ready to takeover.
Reid Scott, who has played Senior Detective Vincent Riley for the three seasons, is leaving the long-running NBC procedural. James Badge Dale steps is joining as a new series regular Deadline.
Scott’s exit was his own doing, as Deadline stated that the cross-country commute and nine months away from his family each year while filming in New York ultimately proved unsustainable. The parting was amicable, and Riley will get a proper conclusion on screen, with having already returned to set to film a closing arc for the character before Dale steps in.
Dale joins returning cast members Tony Goldwyn, Hugh Dancy, Maura Tierney, Odelya Halevi and David Ajala, who plays Riley’s current partner, Junior Detective Theo Walker.
The revolving door is nothing new for Law & Order. Ajala was a replacement for Mehcad Brooks, who departed last summer, and Scott himself succeeded Jeffrey Donovan when he joined the show. Additionally, Anthony Anderson, who reprised his role when the series was resurrected, only remained for the show one season.
When does ‘Law & Order’ Season 26 premiere?
Law & Order Season 26 premieres Oct. 8 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC, behind the season opener of Law & Order: SVU.
Featured image photo credit: Photo by: Will Hart/NBC
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