What to know about Law and Order season 24 before the premiere in October

Updated: Aug. 23, 2024 - Law and Order fans eagerly await the show's return for a 24th season. It'll mark Tony Goldwyn's first full season as DA Nicholas Baxter. Last season was emotional for viewers as he stepped into the role after Sam Waterston's final episode as the beloved DA Jack McCoy. Waterston's legacy on the procedural spans 18 seasons and 400 episodes, he'll surely missed in the upcoming season.

The actor wasn't the only cast member to leave, another departure was announced ahead of the season 23 finale. As such it's going to look a bit different on Law and Order. Let's take a look at everything we know so far about season 24.

Law and Order season 24 premiere date

NBC will see the return of Law and Order for its 24th season in the fall of 2024 at the regular time slot on Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET. The season opener will premiere on Oct. 3 on NBC. New episodes stream on Peacock the following day.

An official episode count for the upcoming season of Law and Order hasn't be announced. It is expected that the series will return to an 18-22 episode order for season 24. The recent season scaled back to 13 episodes due to the Writers Guild and SAG-AFTRA strikes. With the strikes now behind us, most shows should see an uptick in their episode counts this TV year as networks look to return to a more normal season.

Camryn Manheim is leaving Law and Order but we don't know how

Actress Camryn Manheim announced her exit from the series as Lt. Kate Dixon, a role she has played since season 21. What is interesting is that while word of her exit broke before the season 23 finale, the finale did not address Manheim's exit in any way. It's unknown if Manheim will return for an episode or two in season 24 to wrap up her character's storyline or whether her exit will take place off-screen.

As we saw when Jeffrey Donovan exited the show after season 23, Law and Order is not opposed to writing a main character out of the series off-screen so there is a chance Manheim's final episode has already aired and that we won't see her back for season 24 in any capacity.

Cast

This season expects to see the return of Detective Jalen Shaw (Mehcad Brooks) and Detective Vincent Riley (Reid Scott), who handle the investigations. The legal aspects of the cases are handled by Executive Assistant District Attorney Nolan Price (Hugh Dancy) and ADA Samantha Maroun (Odelya Halevi).

Deadline reports Maura Tierney has been cast as a new lieutenant on the series, likely a replacement for Lt. Kate Dixon. Details on her character including her name have yet to be released.

Fans have speculated that due to the announcement of a new Downton Abby movie, Hugh Dancy, who has portrayed Executive Assistant District Attorney Nolan Price since season 21, could be the next cast member to leave. Dancy starred in Downton Abby: A New Era (2022) and could reprise the role in the upcoming film; however, it's important to note that Dancy has not announced an exit from the series and it's unlikely he'll leave the show due to the role.

We don't know when exactly filming on the new Downton Abbey movie will take place, but it's likely Dancy might film his scenes during the summer or perhaps miss an episode or two of season 24 to film any scenes his character might have in the film.