LAW and Order fans are divided after a new actor has joined the show’s cast following star Anthony Anderson’s recent exit.
Viewers have only seen the newcomer, Mehcad Brooks, in a few episodes, but they already have some strong opinions about his role on the series.
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Mehcad made his debut as Detective Jalen Shaw during the franchise’s big, three-show crossover premiere event last week.
While fans noticed the appearance of the Supergirl alum as a new character, they also noticed that Anthony’s character, Kevin Bernard, was missing from the season 22 opener.
Bernard was then again absent this week, and Jalen Shaw continued to join the team after enjoying working with Detective Frank Cosgrove (Jeffrey Donovan) during the crossover.
This led Law & Order fans to realize that Anthony has exited the cast, and his departure was actually announced back in May.
Anthony had signed on to do just one season of the NBC revival.
One confused fan tweeted after seeing this week’s episode: “No Anthony Anderson? What!”
Another commented: “Damn….did Anthony Anderson leave #LawAndOrder?!?!?! I mean…I like Mechad Brooks, but still…”
A third said: “I will miss Anthony Anderson in this show.”
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Meanwhile, one viewer shared: “No offense to Anthony Anderson, but even based on last week’s premiere event Mehcad Brooks has better chemistry as a duo with Donovan.”
“I don’t know where Anthony Anderson is but I’m happy to see Mehcad Brooks,” a second tweeted.
A third declared: “Mehcad Brooks taking over Anthony Anderson’s spot in #LawAndOrder is a welcome change.”
Another wrote: “Mehcad Brooks is who is Replacing Anthony Anderson?!?! Let’s go!”
Showrunner Rick Eid told TVLine of Mehcad’s character coming in as Anthony’s leaves: “You get the idea that Cosgrove liked working with him.
“And then we find out that the character Anthony played has moved on.”
He added: “It’s a little mention. It’s in the time-honored tradition of Law & Order where it’s very brief and it’s like, ‘Moving on. Here we go. We’ve got to solve the case.’”
Law and Order fans have had to get used to quite a bit of change within the franchise lately.
Along with Anthony’s exit from the original show, SVU viewers are getting ready for star Kelli Giddish (who plays Det. Amanda Rollins) to depart later this season.
Last month, the character’s portrayer, Kelli, announced on Instagram that this would be her final season on the long-running series.
She wrote in an emotional caption: “I wanted to address the chatter I’ve seen online and let everyone know that this will, indeed, be my last season on ‘Law & Order: SVU.’
“Playing Rollins has been one of the greatest joys and privileges of my life. I’ve been so fortunate to be a part of the ‘Law & Order’ family for the last 12 years.
“There is simply no other character on TV like Rollins. She’s grown and changed, and I have as well.”
Kelli continued: “I started on this show when I was in my late 20s and I’m grateful I got to spend so many of my adult years with Rollins in my life.
“I want to thank Dick Wolf, Mariska Hargitay, Warren Leight, Peter Jankowski, NBC, Universal Television, all of my co-stars, every single member on the crew and all the writers here for our incredible work together these last 12 years.
“I’m so excited to take all the things I have learned in my time on ‘SVU’ and put them toward everything that’s next to come.”
Shortly after the announcement, it was revealed that her departure from Law and Order was not her choice.
Multiple sources told Variety that the decision wasn’t made by showrunner David Graziano but instead by higher-ups.
The insiders told the outlet that the company’s desire to keep SVU as current and fresh as possible played a role in the decision, as did contract negotiations involving salary.
Fans immediately became furious over the news, as Kelli has been with the show since 2011, and viewers didn’t want to see her go – especially when it’s not on her own terms.
To make matters worse for fans of Kelli’s character, Peacock recently cut a Rollisi – Rollins and boyfriend Carisi – scene from the streaming version of the franchise’s big crossover event last week.
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