Mehcad Brooks Reveals How He Really Feels About Jeffrey Donovan Leaving ‘Law and Order’

Law and Order fans took a while to warm up to Jeffrey Donovan’s character detective Frank Cosgrove in the long-running series. But just when viewers were getting to know a bit more about the character, Donovan shockingly left the series. Donovan’s co-star Mehcad Brooks recently opened up about his partner’s unceremonious departure.

How Mehcad Brooks feels about Jeffrey Donovan’s replacement

Donovan’s Frank Cosgrove worked with Anthony Anderson’s Kevin Bernard before Brooks was cast as Jalen Shaw in Law and Order. It should’ve taken little time for the Blackish star to adjust to one of TV drama’s best revivals. Anderson starred in the original series for three seasons, so he was already in familiar territory. But he wouldn’t stick around nearly as long for the show’s revival, and left Law and Order after season 21. Donovan didn’t have to wait too long for a new dance partner, however, as Brooks made up for Anderson’s absence. And by the sounds of it, the Burn Notice star was very much looking forward to working with his Brooks.

“So, I met Mehcad over Zoom and he’s a fine young gentleman and I’m looking forward to working with him and I will, as will many on the cast and crew, miss Anthony, but he’s in charge of his own destiny,” Donovan told Cinemablend.

Similarly, Brooks couldn’t wait to team up with his Law and Order castmates who immediately treated him like family. Even Mariska Hargitay didn’t hesitate to jump into the arms of the show’s newest recruit. But Brooks especially clicked with Donovan, who he had an off-screen partnership with that wasn’t too much unlike their on-screen counterparts. Except Brooks and Donovan were perhaps less serious than Shaw and Cosgrove.

“So, it’s been really seamless, in a lot of ways Jeffrey Donovan and I are like brothers from the same alien mother who was able to have two different children who are completely different in many ways, but exactly alike,” Brooks once told Screen Rant.

But the characters’ brotherhood didn’t last long. Donovan would later follow Anderson’s lead and quit Law and Order after season 22. He was replaced by Reid Scott, who plays Shaw’s new partner Vincent Riley. When asked to compare Donovan with Scott, Brooks felt there was no comparison.

“Completely different people, very different actors – not worse or better, just different,” Brooks said in an interview with Assignment X.

At the same time, Brooks confided that he shared a similar brotherhood with Scott that he did with his old partner. Still, Brooks was as disappointed with Donovan’s exit as some of the actor’s fans were.

“Reid Scott and I are like brothers from another mother. I didn’t know that was possible in this career, that you could just meet somebody and go, ‘Where’ve you been, man?’ And so, we’re getting along really well. Reid and I have this bond and, in a way, the relationship between Shaw and Riley is the third member of our partnership,” Brooks added. “Jeffrey is incredible. I wish him well, I miss him. I consider him more than just an ex-colleague, I consider him a friend, and I’m excited to see what he’s got coming next.”

Jeffrey Donovan gave no hint that he was planning on leaving ‘Law and Order’

In the beginning, Donovan seemed more than satisfied with his choice to join Dick Wolf’s enduring franchise. If the Burn Notice star had any reservations about staying on Law and Order, he certainly didn’t show it. Cosgrove’s complex backstory only gave Donovan more incentive stay on the series. His character was described as a sort of old-school detective whose beliefs and investigative practices caused him to clash with his co-workers. That kind of story was right up Donovan’s alley.

“That was music to my ears because I love being able to have a dynamic relationship with my partner and with the story,” Donovan said in an interview with ET.

He told the publication that audiences were only scratching Cosgrove’s surface. To peel back more of his character’s layers, he suggested that audiences would have to stick around for quite a while.

“We’re playing the long game,” he said. “I’m interested to see how the little, subtle things will come out for the character. For now, there really isn’t any skeleton in the closet for me to kind of chew on. But I know it’s gonna be told episode by episode over, hopefully, the next few years.”

But now it’s unlikely fans will ever get to learn more about Cosgrove after Donovan left the show. However, it’s not unheard of for actors to return to the series. Donovan has even made a couple of Law and Order reappearances himself over the years. So only time will tell if viewers have truly seen the last of his detective Cosgrove.