Sam Waterston's Jack McCoy will soon furrow his thick eyebrows for the last time on "Law and Order."
The 83-year-old Waterston announced last week that he's leaving the show after 30 years playing McCoy, who first appeared in 1994 as an assistant Manhattan district attorney before taking over as DA for the last few seasons of the show's first run. Waterston has portrayed McCoy in different iterations of Dick Wolf's franchise.
McCoy makes his final appearance on the Feb. 22 episode of the show, which returned to prime time TV on Feb. 24, 2022. The show's original 20-year run ended on May 24, 2010.
Waterston's encore as McCoy gave a sense of continuity when the series returned. While gamely carrying on, Waterston has shown his age during the revival. In a warm farewell letter, Waterston expressed appreciation to the show's fans. He'll be replaced as DA by Tony Goldwyn.
In the series' early days, Waterston's young, swashbuckling assistant DA McCoy often butted heads with Steven Hill's Adam Schiff, the best DA in the series' long history. While disagreeing on courtroom tactics, Schiff and McCoy displayed a gruff fondness for each other.
Portrayed as the son of a Chicago policeman, McCoy often pushed the legal boundaries to support conservative beliefs such as backing the death penalty.
McCoy had a fraught relationship with Jerry Orbach's detective Lenny Briscoe, making for some memorable scenes between the two Broadway pros.
A lover of fine Scotch, McCoy also heated up the screen with an illicit relationship with his beautiful assistant, Jill Hennessy's Claire Kincaid, one of several such affairs for which McCoy was notorious.
Kincaid was killed off in an auto accident in one of the show's most shocking episodes. Recovering alcoholic Briscoe's falling off the wagon led to the fatal crash.
After Kincaid's death, McCoy became more circumspect, conducting cordial yet Platonic relationships with later gorgeous assistants Jamie Ross, played by Carey Lowell, and Abbie Carmichael, portrayed by Angie Harmon.
Nominated for an Academy Award for his role in the 1984 film "The Killing Fields," Waterston received acclaim for a variety of Broadway roles. He said in an interview for "Fresh Air" a few years ago that his "Law and Order" salary allowed him to keep performing on the stage. He observed that he thought Wolf deserved a Tony award for keeping so many New York stage actors employed.
In his farewell letter, Waterston expressed a desire for more roles. While I wasn't enthusiastic about his performance when I saw him portray Prospero in a Shakespeare in the Park production of "The Tempest" at Central Park in New York City, I'd love for Waterston to crown his career by playing King Lear or Hickey in Eugene O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh."
Along with Orbach's Briscoe, Waterston's Jack McCoy holds an esteemed place in the TV character hall of fame.