TV Jots

Of course, we already know that his ADA colleague Casey Novak, played by actress Diane Neal since 2001, is also scheduled to depart the highest-rated Law & Order series at the end of this season. In her case, the character will get a replacement — rumored to be a man — as happens on all of the individual L&O shows, which play musical chairs in the legal department frequently enough.

The Hollywood Reporter states that Beach initially had a one-year deal with an option to extend to a second year. Apparently, both he and the showrunners declined to go that route — why, we’ll likely never know.

I personally will miss having Beach around, just because viewers never really had the chance to get to know him that well. At the same time, I’m also hoping very urgently that this development means someone will come back to their senses and kick the presence of Richard Belzer‘s Detective John Munch up a notch or ten. It still baffles me why anyone ever thought it was a good idea to diminish the screen time of the dreary, depressing show’s most consistent and reliable source of much-needed comic relief.

Tags: Adam Beach, Diane Neal, Law & Order, NBC, Richard Belzer, Special Victims Unit, television, tv