Law & Order Star Reveals Why They Left After One Season

By Nicole Drum

The original Law & Order returned for Season 21 this years a dozen years after the series was canceled bringing with it a popular character, Anthony Anderson's Detective Kevin Bernard. But while the series has already been renewed for Season 22, it was announced earlier this year that Anderson will not be coming back. While it was reported that Anderson had only signed a one-year deal, Anderson himself is now opening up about his departure from the series after its triumphant return.

Speaking with ET, Anderson said that he chose not to come back for Season 22 of the NBC series because he simply wants to "create more shows like Black-ish".

"I wanted to go off and create more shows like Black-ish, create things that I have ownership in, and do something a little bit different," Anderson said.

He went on to explain that he's pitching another series, Miraculous, and he's excited to see what comes next for that project.

Anderson's departure prompted the series to cast a new detective for Season 22 and it was announced last month that the series had added Supergirl and Mortal Kombat star Mehcad Brooks. Other than being a detective, no other details about Brooks' character have been revealed. What has been revealed about the upcoming new season of Law & Order — as well as new seasons of Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Organized Crime — is that NBC is planning a three-show crossover event to kick things off on Thursday, September 22nd.

Law & Order first debuted in 1990. The series spawned several spinoff series, including Law & Order: SVU which recently completed its 23rd season and aired its milestone 500th episode. Law & Order was initially cancelled in 2010 after renewal negotiations fell through, but returned earlier this year, bringing back some of the original cast in the process.

"Law & Order is quite simply one of the most iconic shows in television history, and the idea of continuing its legacy and partnering with Dick on an all-new season is nothing short of exhilarating" Susan Rovner, Chairman, Entertainment Content, NBC Universal Television and Streaming said at the time. "This is great news for NBC as well as TV fans everywhere."

What do you think about Anderson's departure from Law & Order? Are you excited for the series' return for Season 22? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section!

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