Christopher Meloni will be back as Elliot Stabler for the upcoming Season 5 of Law & Order: Organized Crime. However, he won't be the only Stabler returning, as Dean Norris, (Breaking Bad) who plays his older brother, Randall Stabler, will equally feature but in a bigger capacity than before, as his character has been upped to a series regular, Deadline reports. Norris was introduced to the procedural show last season as Elliot's estranged brother who has an established career as a successful real estate developer. With his return, it appears the Stabler brothers will have the opportunity to make up for lost time.
Audiences met Randall for the first time when the Stabler brothers had to reunite to look after their ailing mother, Bernadette (Ellen Burstyn). His backstory revealed that Randall had to distance himself from his family from a young age following a bitter feud with younger brother Elliot which also involved their father. With their mother's failing health and having the brothers in their feelings, they found a way to bury the hatchet, and now it appears the next season will see them getting to know each other better. Season 4 also saw the introduction of a third Stabler in Joe Jr. (Michael Trotter) who would later begin working for the OCCB as an informant. Noris appeared in 9 episodes of Season 4 and with this promotion will likely appear in the abbreviated 10 episodes of the upcoming Season 5.
What Is 'Law and Order: Organized Crime' About?
Image via NBC
A part of the massive procedural franchise created by Dick Wolf, Law and Order: Organized Crime spun off from Law & Order: Special Victims Unit centering on Elliot Stabler, one half of the primary partner duo (the other being Mariska Hargitay's Olivia Benson) whose performances have been a major contributor to the show's success. Elliot's mission in Organized Crime was to sniff out the people who murdered his wife. A departure from other shows in the franchise, Organized Crime follows a single-arc format where a case takes multiple episodes to resolve.
The fate of the show was recently up in the air after it was seemingly sidelined as other spin-offs received new season orders. Finally, it was renewed for another season, but with a twist, as the show was permanently moved from linear to exclusive viewing on NBC streaming service, Peacock. This move was brought about by the show's declining ratings on broadcast TV. However, rather than an outright cancellation, it was relieving to see the show handed another lease of life, albeit in an abbreviated format, which might just be what works better for its style.
Season 5 of Law & Order: Organized Crime is in development with star Meloni writing episode 2 of the series which will feature his buddy Olivia Benson. Stay tuned for more.
