For 11 seasons, Christopher Meloni portrayed the beloved police detective Elliot Stabler on Law & Order: SVU, and he is now returning in a new series titled Law & Order: Organized Crime.
The news came in March 2020 when Deadline reported that NBC had given a series order to the new drama featuring Elliot Stabler.
After a decade out of the Law & Order world, fans are about to get caught up with the character once again.
Here is everything we know so far about Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 1.
This article provides everything that is known about Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 1 and all related news. As such, this article will be updated over time with news, rumors, and analysis. Meanwhile, let’s dig down into what is known so far.
What is Season 1 of Law & Order: Organized Crime about?
According to Christopher Meloni, there is a lot to unpack in the 13-episode series, Law & Order: Organized Crime.
“There’s a lot to unpack here. A lot of fans want to know, ‘What the heck? Why the abrupt leaving? Why no phone call to Olivia, and by the way, where have you been?’ I hope they’re along for the ride,” Meloni said in an interview about the new show as well as his anticipated guest spot on Law & Order: SVU.
“As you can imagine, it’s going to be heavily-laden with 10 years of stuff and a lot of emotion, not that it’ll be an emotional scene.”
However, there is no way to know what this show will be about because there have been major changes behind the scenes, and changes that could really hurt the show.
In June, Dick Wolf fired showrunner Craig Gore from Law & Order: Organized Crime.
The reason was due to Gore’s social media posts during the BLM protests after the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police officers.
These social media posts included a photo of Gore with a gun and the word “curfew” and a second saying he would “light motherf**ers up who are trying to f*** with my property.”
“I will not tolerate this conduct, especially during our hour of national grief. I am terminating Craig Gore immediately,” Dick Wolf said in a statement to Variety.
Just this month, there was another major hit for the show. Matt Olmstead, who replaced Craig Gore, stepped down as the showrunner, making one wonder how long it will be until the show hits NBC.
There has been no immediate replacement, and both Law & Order and the Chicago One shows started production for a November premiere date, but Law & Order Organized Crime did not.
This is not a shock, though, as FBI, another Wolf show, went through several showrunner changes before settling into its current state.
Release date latest: When does Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 1 come out?
Law & Order: Organized Crime ended up delayed on NBC due to the coronavirus pandemic shutting down production of shows across the world over the summer.
There was supposed to be an early-season appearance by Elliott Stabler on Law & Order: SVU, but that was postponed. According to NBC, it wanted to wait until Law & Order: Organized Crime premiered to have Stabler show up on his former show.
Law & Order: SVU premiered on NBC as part of its fall season on Thursday night, Nov. 12, at 9/8c. Law & Order: Organized Crime was supposed to follow SVU at 10/9c, but it was put on hold until 2021.
“These days, all plans are subject to change. And then they change again. And again. For now, we won’t reintroduce Stabler until the night of his Organized Crime premiere,” showrunner Warren Leight wrote on Twitter.
That date was finally revealed with Deadline reporting that Law & Order: Organized Crime will hit on April 1 as part of a two-hour crossover event with Law & Oder: SVU.
The crossover starts with Law & Order: SVU at 9 p.m., followed by Law & Order: Organized Crime at 10 p.m.
This will be the first time in 10 years that Christopher Meloni and Mariska Hargitay have shared the screen on Law & Order since Meloni left the show after 12 seasons as Elliot Stabler.
The rest of NBC’s Thursday night schedule includes Manifest at 8/7c.
Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 1 cast updates
Christopher Meloni returns to the Law & Order world as Elliot Stabler once again. He was part of the Law & Order: SVU franchise for the first 12 seasons as one of the two leads.
However, in the Season 13 premiere, the character of Elliot Stabler abruptly retired offscreen, and fans were left puzzled at what happened to the character after that.
It has now been 10 years since Stabler had appeared on a Law & Order episode, and he will return this year for Law & Order: Organized Crime, as well as a guest appearance on Law & Order: SVU to hopefully explain what happened.
Meloni was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2006, in the Outstanding Lead Actor category in a Drama Series, for his role as Elliot Stabler on Law & Order: SVU.
There is no word yet on his supporting cast, although there will be a new “team” he puts together based on this synopsis:
“[Meloni] returns to the NYPD to battle organized crime after a devastating personal loss. However, the city and police department have changed dramatically in the decade he’s been away, and he must adapt to a criminal justice system in the midst of its own moment of reckoning.
“Stabler will aim to find absolution and rebuild his life while leading an elite new task force that is taking apart the city’s most powerful crime syndicates one by one.”
NBC has yet to announce when Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 1 will premiere.