Law & Order Stars Tease Major Revelations About Detective Riley in Upcoming Episode

Law & Order returned for Season 23 this week and saw the addition of Reid Scott's Detective Vincent Riley, replacing Frank Cosgrove (Jeffrey Donovan) and while the season premiere offered a bit about Riley as he and Detective Shaw (Mehcad Brooks) investigated a murder on a college campus, it's clear that there's a lot more to Riley and according to Brooks and Camryn Manheim, who plays Lieutenant Dixon, viewers will find out a lot more in an upcoming episode.

"We finally learn a lot about Vince Riley when we are hunting down a serial killer," Manheim told TVLine. "It's possible that he might have been able to have stopped that person long ago but was transferred for some unknown reason."

"It causes [Shaw] to slow the evolution of the relationship," Brooks added. "And it causes him to ask some questions internally and externally. And because of the nature of the case in which his secret comes out, Shaw has some questions."

How Did Law & Order Address Cosgrove's Departure?

The Season 23 premiere addressed Cosgrove's departure by having Riley and Shaw discuss the matter while going over the details of a case at the station. During the discussion, Riley asks Shaw what happened with Cosgrove as he knows him and calls him a great cop. Shaw agrees and says that he just "got jammed up. Being too honest about things people aren't too honest about these days." When Riley says it's not a good time to have an option, Shaw replies, "it is not."

It was announced last November that Donovan would not be returning for Season 23. Donovan joined the Law & Order cast in 2021, starring as Cosgrove for Seasons 21 and 22. The character, a junior detective and partner for Anthony Anderson's Detective Kevin Bernard, was described as a "tough-as-nails detective that seeks justice by whatever means necessary. Every legal drama needs a bad cop, and Donovan shines."

At the end of Season 22, Detective Cosgrove was last seen working alongside his partner Jalen Shaw (Mehcad Brooks) as they worked to arrest a waiter who had assassinated a U.S. Senator. Brooks joined the cast for Season 22, replacing Anderson.

Brooks has previously spoken about joining the beloved, long-running franchise.

"The biggest creative challenge, I think, was knowing that there is a DNA to Law and Order, particularly the originals, it's challenging to come in and say, 'I don't want to challenge the DNA of the show, but I do want to put my own spin on it, I do want to put my own spin on the character, I do want to update certain things about the show, and I want to come in and bring an edge, and a voice of diversity that I'm not sure it's had in quite some time.' There's something about taking that leap of faith, and walking off that cliff of creativity, into that dark place, and not knowing if the ground is gonna be there," Brooks said.