Jeffrey Donovan becomes second actor after Anthony Anderson to leave ‘Law & Order’ before season 23
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Jeffrey Donovan has reportedly left “Law & Order” according to People. The 55-year-old, who played Detective Frank Cosgrove on the popular series, will not return for season 23 of the series due to creative differences.
Donovan took on the role of lead detective in seasons 21 and 22 of the series. His last episode was the season 22 finale where he and his partner Shaw (Mehcad Brooks) were tasked with stopping a waiter who assassinated a US senator.
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The search is currently underway to find a new series regular to fill, TVLine reports. 13 new episodes of the series are expected to air over the next year.
Jeffrey Donovan, who played Detective Frank Cosgrove on the popular series, will not return for season 23 of the series due to creative differences (Getty Images)
The final seasons of ‘Law & Order’ serve as a reboot
Recent seasons of Law & Order serve as a reboot of the classic legal drama that aired from 1990 to 2010. Season 21 arrived 12 years later with a 2022 premiere and some new additions to the legal team.
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Donovan shared the screen with Mehcad Brooks, Sam Waterston, Hugh Dancy, Camryn Manheim, Odelya Halevi and Anthony Anderson who left his legacy role as Det. Kevin Bernard after season 21.
Jeffrey Donovan is so good pic.twitter.com/wzLfZuiu1M
— Thatherton (@Thatherton2) November 12, 2023
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What did Anthony Anderson leave the flagship show?
Anderson has previously spoken about his excitement about joining the revival, even calling for series creator Dick Wolf to reprise the role. “I was like, ‘Well, you know, I’ve been a free agent since November 19,'” Anderson said of the black end in 2022, adding, “And [Dick] it was like, ‘Anthony, you have no idea how happy this phone call makes me.’
Anthony Anderson has previously spoken about his excitement about joining the revival, even calling for series creator Dick Wolf to reprise the role (Getty Images)
Anderson was replaced by Mehcad Brooks who began portraying Frank’s new partner, Detective Jalen Shaw during season 22.
“I will – like [will] a lot among the cast and crew – miss Anthony, but he is responsible for his own destiny,” Donovan told CinemaBlend in June 2022.
Although his short stint was planned all along, Anderson has spoken out about his departure. “I wanted to create more shows like Black-ish, create things that I own and do something a little different,” he told Entertainment Tonight at the time.
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Although Donovan’s tenure on “Law & Order” is over, he is no stranger to television audiences. He starred in the 2000s crime series Burn Notice as the sarcastic Michael Weston and appeared as a defense attorney in Netflix’s “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile,” a dramatization of the killer’s life in series Ted Bundy.
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