Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (2025)

Get out your gavels and handcuffs: “Law & Order” is back for its 24th season — and, of course, the show remains as arresting as ever!

Last season ended with a new district attorney about to be elected, following veteran Jack McCoy’s (Sam Waterston) exit. Meanwhile, fans are eager to learn who’s new, who’s coming back, and what the next season is going to feel like.

Perhaps surprising, showrunner Rick Eid has said the series is going to get a little more personal. “Something we’re sort of emphasizing this year is trying to learn more about some of our characters,” he told NBC Insider. “It’s still Dick Wolf’s ‘Law & Order’ and there’s still compelling, topical cases every week and ethical and moral dilemmas every week, but we’re trying, on certain episodes, to dig just a little bit deeper into our people and seeing how their personal lives intersect with their professional lives.”

So let’s get a little more personal with the detectives and lawyers who’ll be fighting New York City’s criminals this season!

Maura Tierney (Lieutenant Jessica Brady)

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (1)

Newcomer — to the franchise, at least — Tierney is now in charge of the detectives of the 27th Precinct. She takes over from Lt. Kate Dixon (Camryn Manheim), who’d been at the helm for three seasons. Eid noted to NBC Insider that Brady might be in charge, but still “thinks and acts like a detective” and will be more involved with the cases, rather than just supervising.

He added that she has a “near-photographic memory” and is quick to observe small quirks about people, though where she developed her unique skills isn’t clear yet. And the detectives in her charge may not necessarily get along as well with her as they did with Dixon. “It’s a little unsettling to have a new boss come in that they don’t know, and they don’t really love bosses,” Eid explained.

Tierney stopped by the 3rd hour of TODAY on Oct. 11 to talk about her new role, which is also her first as a police officer.

“She’s not very charming. I usually play warmer people,” she said of Brady.

“She doesn't really care if anybody likes her,” Tierney added.

Her character also shared an intense scene in the second episode with , who crossed over and was a witness for the defense.

Tierney said it was “great” working with Hargitay.

“It was really fun for her to come over. ... She has a really big, very warm personality,” she explained, adding, “Everyone is stoked when Olivia comes over.”

Tierney also appreciated their characters' tense scene.

“It's fun that the characters ... we kind of butt up against each other,” she said. “I think both of our arguments are correct. So it's an interesting scene: There's no real right or wrong there.”

Tony Goldwyn (District Attorney Nicholas Baxter)

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (2)

There’s a new man at the head of the DA’s office, now that Baxter has won the election and stepped into McCoy’s shoes. The end of last season focused on a disruption in his marriage, the difficult election and his nearly getting shot. That’s a lot for one DA to deal with, and things aren’t likely to get easier. He’ll probably have more verbal confrontations with his underling, EADA Nolan Price (Hugh Dancy), and have to answer to the apparent politically motivated choices he sometimes makes.

Hugh Dancy (Executive Assistant District Attorney Nolan Price)

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (3)

Price might not always get along with his new boss, but he remains in charge of the bigger caseloads at One Hogan Place. By the start of the new season, the pair are getting along better, but expect ongoing sparks and friction.

“Nick Baxter is a little bit different than the character of McCoy, and the relationship between McCoy and Price is different than Baxter and Price,” said Eid to NBC Insider. “Baxter is a little bit more political, a little bit more opaque, so you don’t really know where he’s coming from all the time, so that’s a little more complicated from Price’s perspective.”

Odelya Halevi (Assistant District Attorney Samantha Maroun)

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (4)

Maroun returns to her underling role in a shaken-up office with Baxter now in charge. Halevi told NBC Insider that she brings “empathy to the table,” which gives her a unique “power” in the role. But that empathy can be a liability when she needs to remain detached from a case. In Season 23, memories of her parents fleeing Lebanon caused her to falter during a case — leading Price to demand she resign, or rise to the occasion. Her difficult history also includes a sister who was abused and murdered, a past she brought up in the Season 24 premiere during a similar case.

Mehcad Brooks (Detective Jalen Shaw)

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (5)

Shaw is tough-but-tender, a detective who’s been at this awhile and knows the best way to get the information he needs to help solve a case. He’s also got a law degree and practiced for a few years before joining the police force. Shaw began his police work in the narcotics division before he became a homicide detective. He first appeared on the “L&O” offshoot “Organized Crime” as part of an unprecedented crossover event with both shows and “Law & Order: SVU” as a detective in the 32nd Precinct, after which he transferred to the 27th.

Last season he took on a new partner in Detective Vincent Riley (Reid Scott), and the two became a real “odd couple,” as he told NBC Insider.

“We want the same things, but we’re coming from such different worlds and different perspectives that it does cause for a lot of comedy,” he said, adding, “It does cause for some amiable conflict.”

Reid Scott (Detective Vincent Riley)

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (6)

Brooks and Riley have camaraderie, but also two different personalities. When he joined the 2-7 last season, he was coming back from a suspension after punching a police captain. (In his defense, he was defending Lt. Dixon, after the captain had some choice words for her.) He’s had to cope with a dying father, a dying marriage and a growing drinking problem on the job. Dixon empathized with his struggle and helped him find a new home in the precinct.

In the new season, fans will meet Riley's brother, played by “Blacklist” and “New Amsterdam” vet Ryan Eggold, NBC Insider reported.

Randee Dawn

Randee Dawn (she/her) is an entertainment journalist and author based in Brooklyn. In addition to writing for TODAY.com, Variety and The Los Angeles Times, her debut novel, Tune in Tomorrow, about a reality TV show run by mythic creatures, published in 2022. She's also the co-author of The Law & Order: SVU Unofficial Companion. When not interviewing the stars or dabbling in speculative fiction, she dreams of the next place she can travel to, or cuddles her Westie. More at RandeeDawn.com.

Meet the Season 24 cast of 'Law & Order' — from Tony Goldwyn to Maura Tierney (2025)
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