‘Law & Order’: Odelya Halevi Teases How Maroun’s Desperation in Premiere Case Could Cost Her

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Law & Order is kicking off its 24th season with a case that’s going to be personal for one of its ADAs.

In “Catch and Kill,” airing Thursday, October 3, a Brooklyn prosecutor is found murdered in her apartment, and she was ADA Samantha Maroun’s (Odelya Halevi) friend. The ADA is therefore determined to make sure an eyewitness comes forward. The episode will also be introducing the new lieutenant, Jessica Brady, played by Maura Tierney, following Camryn Manheim‘s exit at the end of Season 23.

Below, Halevi previews the episode and how far Maroun is willing to go.

Set up the case and what makes it personal for Maroun.

Odelya Halevi: This episode starts with the prosecutor in Brooklyn who is found murdered in her apartment, and Maroun, knowing that prosecutor personally, is really moved and she takes center stage both in the trial and investigating, and she takes desperate measures to make sure that an eyewitness will testify. And this episode is really diving into her past—she’s affected by it so much because of her sister’s death, the rape and murder of her sister and her inability to be there for her sister. So she is really desperate to win. And through sadness and frustration and anger, she’s determined to do what she has to do, even if it’s going to cost her her job. She’s determined to win this case and bring justice.

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How is she handling balancing the work for the case and her grief? Because she lost a friend, too.

I think that she’s really putting the grief aside for a minute in order to win this. As we’ve seen with Maroun in previous episodes, she is determined to win. She’s playing to win and she keeps her own emotions to mostly herself. And she lives in a world filled with men. And so yes, she brings a lot of empathy, but she also has to stay strong and be quick and really do anything in order to win and prove a point. And that’s what she’s doing. In this episode, we’re going to see an arc with her emotions and decisions.

How does Maroun feel about Baxter (Tony Goldwyn) as her boss? He’s sticking around.

Baxter keeps pushing Maroun to defy convention, to think outside of the norm. I think she needed that, that validation. And we’re going to hopefully see more of that throughout the season. Also Tony Goldwyn in real life, I feel like that’s who he is. Our personal relationship is very similar. He is very inspiring. He’s pushing me to be more, to want more, and I’m just so appreciative.

Has Maroun had any significant interactions with Brady yet?

First of all, I want to say I’ve been a long-time fan of Maura Tierney. I mean, I cannot believe that I get to work with her. She’s great. She’s amazing. What an incredible actress and human being. And also, I mean, finally, someone my height on the show is great. [Laughs] I love her.

We experienced Baxter shaking things up for Price [Hugh Dancy] and Maroun last season, and now we’re going to experience Brady shaking things up for Riley [Reid Scott] and Shaw [Mehcad Brooks] this season in the precinct. She is a veteran detective. She sees things no one else does. She challenges Riley and Shaw in a way that’s going to create an interesting dynamic for the audience.

Scott Gries/NBC

Are we going to see more about Maroun’s sister throughout the season or is it really this episode that’s going to be digging into it for her?

This season, we’re really going to dive into more of that, more personal stories. We’re going to see how each victim’s story affects a character on the show in a different way and how that story would affect a person’s past. We have an episode called “Big Brother,” where Riley gets personally involved with his brother. His brother is connected to an investigation dealing with underground gambling and murder. So really each case is going to bring out more personal stories.

Law & Order, Season 24 Premiere, Thursday, October 3, 8/7c, NBC