Spoilers ahead for the November 26 episode of Night Court, called "The Judge's Boyfriend's Dad, Part 2," which aired on NBC and will be available streaming with a Peacock subscription.
Night Court ended Season 2 earlier in spring of the 2024 TV schedule with a big question: is Dan the biological father of Jake? Hijinks certainly ensued as Abby tried to figure it out in the Season 3 premiere, only the thicken the plot when she discovered that she could actually be Jake's half sister. Luckily, she ruled that out fairly quickly, but it took almost the entire second episode of Season 3 for everybody to learn the truth: Jake is not, in fact, Dan's secret son. Ryan Hansen spoke with CinemaBlend about at least getting to play the "possibility" for part of the season.
As he previously told CinemaBlend, Ryan Hansen didn't even know the cliffhanger resolution until he got the script for "The Judge's Boyfriend's Dad, Part 2," so it was possible in his mind that his character was the son of John Larroquette's for quite a while. It truly did seem like Night Court was building to a confirmation, particularly since they had so many similar mannerisms. When I asked about working with Larroquette to nail those mannerisms as maybe father and son, Hansen shared:
Just to get to have so many scenes with John [was fun]! I'm in the previous episodes, I'll have a couple lines with him here and there, whatever. But these were me and him, which was awesome, because he's such a legend, and he's so good, and to have that possibility of him being Jake's father was so great, because I can see how even [for] Jake at his age, for that to mean something.
While the question of Jake's paternity and Dan's belated impending fatherhood was definitely played for laughs, the resolution made it clear that it really would have meant something to both men. There also wasn't any indication that they would continue their bonding as friends into the 2025 TV schedule now that they know they're not related, but they (and we) will always have them joining forces to repair a chair to remember this storyline by.
On the subject of the possible father/son connection being meaningful for Dan as well as Jake, Ryan Hansen had more thoughts to share. He said:
Even for Dan, for that to mean something – and they really connected, and started to fantasize about having this new relationship at this age in their life – was really heart-wrenching. And then to find out that it wasn't the case is heartbreaking, but also they're guys. They'll move on. It's all good, but they had that moment together. It was really, really fun, because John is just a legend and getting to work with him is so cool.
For now, the bigger question might be how much of Ryan Hansen's Jake we'll see in Season 3. Abby debunking the possibility that Jake was Dan's biological son doesn't mean a breakup between the two, so hopefully he'll be around more as the season continues. Night Court does have Wendie Malick and her "bad chemistry" with Dan to explore now, and I'd say that the newest series regular already fits right in after a fun new video.
On the guest star front, Lacretta – a.k.a. Gurgs – hasn't yet gotten her wish for Christopher Meloni, but Melissa Rauch is set for another Big Bang Theory reunion with the arrival of Mayim Bialik, playing... Mayim Bialik, in what could be a bonkers storyline in the best way.
Find out what Night Court has in store as Season 3 continues with new episodes on Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC, following St. Denis Medical and ahead of The Voice. You can also revisit the earlier episodes of the season streaming now via Peacock.
