Law & Order spoilers follow.
Sam Waterston has quit Law & Order after more than 400 episodes on the show.
According to Deadline, Waterston will be departing his role as District Attorney Jack McCoy in Law & Order's February 22 episode.
The show has already lined up a replacement for the legendary cast member, with Scandal and Oppenheimer star Tony Goldwyn set to play a brand-new character.
Related: Law & Order gets unexpected new spinoff
Goldwyn had previously been a part of the Law & Order franchise, playing Frank Goren on the Criminal Intent series. His first episode hasn't been dated yet.
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Waterston could be seen as the face of the Law & Order franchise, having appeared throughout most of the show's 23 seasons.
He has also played Jack McCoy on spin-off shows Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Law & Order: Trial by Jury — as well as on Homicide: Life on the Street and Exiled: A Law & Order Movie.
He was one of several Law & Order cast members to return when NBC resurrected the show in 2021. It is now one of three Law & Order shows currently on the air, along with Special Victims Unit and Organized Crime.
Related: Law & Order star reveals why he left after just one season
Over the years, Waterston was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on Law & Order as well as a Golden Globe nomination. He won a Screen Actors Guild Award for the role in 1998.
Prior to Waterston leaving the show, Law & Order also recently dealt with a cast departure when Jeffrey Donovan left his role as Detective Frank Cosgrove.
Law & Order airs on Thursdays at 8pm ET on NBC, followed by Law & Order: Special Victims Unit at 9pm and Law & Order: Organized Crime at 10pm. The shows air on Sky Witness in the UK, with select episodes available on NOW.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
