Spoilers ahead for Episode 5 of Law & Order Season 23, called "Last Dance."
An era has ended on Law & Order in the 2024 TV schedule with NBC's broadcast of "Last Dance," which was Sam Waterston's final bow as a series regular after more than 400 episodes as Jack McCoy. His exit by the end of "Last Dance" wasn't surprising, as the actor himself made the announcement weeks ago, and NBC's promotion has been heavy on saying goodbye to the character. So, we knew that he was leaving, but not how. Now that the episode has aired, let's look at what went down and whether the door is open for Waterston to potentially return.
How Law & Order Wrote Out Sam Waterston's Jack McCoy
The case of the week kicked off with Shaw and Riley investigating the murder of a woman in the wee hours of the morning in Central Park, and they eventually connected the dots to billionaire philanthropist Scott Kelton, played by Supernatural vet Rob Benedict. Unfortunately for Nolan and Maroun, Kelton was a close friend of the mayor, and the mayor ordered Price to cut a deal with Kelton that amounted to a slap on the wrist for murder. If Price refused, the mayor told him that he'd make sure McCoy lost the upcoming district attorney election and replace him with somebody who would ruin Price.
Price was unwilling to back down, but McCoy wasn't willing to let him ruin his own career. He stepped up to lead the murder trial and showed off the skills that he honed over 400 episodes to close the case and get the confession. He had the chance to deliver an emotional and meaningful closing argument before the big reveal. McCoy fell on the sword to save Price's career and guarantee that the mayor couldn't get one of his cronies into the office of the district attorney ASAP.
Jack McCoy decided to step down as DA, which meant that the governor would be able to appoint his successor who wouldn't target Price for his actions or corrupt the office. Price protested the news, but McCoy told the ADA that he'd been thinking about leaving for a while. As he said, "it's time." The episode ended with McCoy walking out of the courthouse, briefcase in hand, hat on head, having saved the day one last time.
Could McCoy Come Back To Law & Order?
McCoy pretty much scorched the earth behind him by angering the mayor in Sam Waterston's final episode, and his comment that he'd been thinking about stepping down for a while suggests that he's looking to retire, not find a new job in law. I'd say it's unlikely that the character will ever return in the capacity of a lawyer, so "Last Dance" presumably truly was McCoy's last dance in the courtroom.
But stepping down as DA doesn't mean that Jack McCoy can never appear on Law & Order ever again, if the 83-year-old actor would be interested. I can imagine that one of the characters might go to McCoy for advice or even info on a past case, similar to how SVU and Organized Crime have brought back Dann Florek over the years.
Whatever the future holds, McCoy left the job alive and well, and there's no reason why the character couldn't return at some point or other. There was no way that Law & Order would write him out as unceremoniously as Anthony Anderson as Kevin Bernard in Season 22 or Jeffrey Donovan as Frank Cosgrove in the Season 23 premiere, and it's entirely possible that we'll see McCoy again... or at least we can hold out hope. Waterston leaves behind as strong legacy as one of the Law & Order actors to appear in the most episodes of the franchise.
If you want to revisit Sam Waterston's earlier years as Jack McCoy, you can find past seasons of Law & Order streaming with a Peacock Premium subscription. The show must go on as well, so you can keep tuning in to NBC on Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET for new episodes of Season 23 ahead of Law & Order: SVU at 9 p.m. ET and Law & Order: Organized Crime at 10 p.m. ET.
