NEW YORK — Jack McCoy is back on the job.
Sam Waterston is joining NBC's revival of "Law & Order" when the show relaunches in February, Wolf Entertainment announced Thursday.
Waterston played the role for sixteen seasons beginning with the show's fifth season in 1994. His character, who rose through the ranks to New York district attorney, was last seen in the 2018 "Law & Order: SVU" episode "The Undiscovered Country."
Waterston received three Emmy nominations, a Golden Globe nomination, and 11 Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for his portrayal of McCoy.
Variety reports that NBC has cast Jeffrey Donovan — best known for his role as an ex-spy in USA Network's "Burn Notice" — in a leading role. The publication also reports Anthony Anderson will reprise his role as Detective Kevin Bernard, with series newcomer Hugh Dancy playing the assistant district attorney.
Camryn Manheim and Odelya Halevi have both been tapped as series regulars, according to Deadline.
The show is expected to return Thursday, Feb. 24 at 8 p.m. (7 p.m. Central).
The legendary cops-and-courts police drama's last season aired in 2010, leaving it tied with "Gunsmoke" for the longest-running prime-time TV drama. Series creator Dick Wolf said its return was his "dream come true."
Wolf's shows remain a popular draw for NBC, with his three prime-time “Chicago” series making up the network's Wednesday night schedule. The popularity of those shows helps NBC beat out other networks as the new fall TV season gets underway, especially with the crucial 18- through 49-year-old audience.
"Law and Order's" return to the spotlight joins the sixth and final season of "This is Us" -- and some of the biggest sporting events of the year.
NBC will air the Feb. 13 Super Bowl -- traditionally the single most-watched television program each year. And while networks usually use that to premiere a new show immediately after the game, NBC will instead jump straight into Winter Olympics coverage (held Feb. 4 through Feb. 20). Variety reports that this is the first time a network has aired both the Super Bowl and Winter Olympics at the same time.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
