‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ Star Yaya DaCosta Speaks Out on Her ‘Unexpected’ Exit & Andrea’s Future

Fans of The Lincoln Lawyer are still trying to pick their jaw off the floor after the the Season 3 cliffhanger. It saw Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) pulled over for a missing license plate. This led to the body of his client Sam Scales (Christopher Thornton) being found in the trunk. Those who read Michael Connelly’s novel “The Law of Innocence” have an idea of what’s to come. Thankfully, Netflix confirmed Season 4 began filming in Los Angeles in February. 

One name we sadly may not see on the call sheet is that of Yaya DaCosta, who played criminal prosecutor Andrea Freeman. Her relationship with Mickey evolved from being fierce courtroom adversaries to cozy friends with benefits, and more. Showrunner Ted Humphrey spoke about the “great chemistry” between the two to TV Insider. “Yaya’s performance is fantastic as Andrea,” he said. “Andrea is not even a part of this story in the book, but we so enjoyed that performance from Season 2, and we so enjoyed the chemistry between the two characters that we just felt this was one of those ways that we expand the books.”

In the Michael Connelly books, Andrea was best known for appearing in The Fifth Witness novel, which was adapted during Season 2. Her role was expanded in the series with “Andy” getting involved with Mickey on a deeper level. However, since she doesn’t appear in the adapted book. This fact and the return of Mickey’s ex-wife Maggie McPherson (Neve Campbell) back in the mix further signaled Andrea’s exit with their dynamic a renewed focal point. 

The Lincoln Lawyer. (L to R) Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller, Yaya DaCosta as Andrea Freemann in episode 305 of The Lincoln Lawyer. Cr. Lara Solanki/Netflix © 2024

Humphrey did not completely close the door for the character. “You never say never. First of all, obviously we’ve got to get another season and then hopefully seasons after that. We feel like we have a really great palette of characters to play with, and so you can bring them in and out of the stories,” he said. “…So Andrea is a great tool in our toolbox that we would love to find another way to use.” 

DaCosta addressed her future regarding The Lincoln Lawyer during a recent interview with TV Insider. “Andrea’s absence was not expected or explained to the audience,” she said of Andrea’s open-ended onscreen exit. “Sometimes when things like this happen, the writers will give an explanation in a conversation between two characters who are on the show. Or someone will make a phone call and pretend the disappeared character is on the other end. Who knows what they’ll do? I’m just focusing on the now and future.” 

During Season 3, Andrea was feeling the guilt when she made the mistake of not letting her client Deborah Glass (Rebekah Kennedy) know her abusive ex-husband Scott (Ian Fisher) was temporary being let out jail. Sadly, Glass was murdered by him. There was one final moment (at least for the foreseeable future) Andrea shared with Mickey as he was in a dark place following the one-two punch of Eddie Rojas’ (Allyn Moriyon) death in a car accident and Neil Bishop’s (Holt McCallany) suicide. She stressed these tragedies were not his fault. The meetup demonstrated how they’ve leaned on each other. “Thanks for checking in on me,” he said. She reached out for his hands and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek and responded with, “any time” before walking away. “Andy,” Mickey called out. “F*ck the system. If you want Scott Class behind bars, you put him there.” 

After being taken off the case, she confronted her boss, DA Adam Suarez (Philip Anthony-Rodriguez), and demanded to be put back on the case. It was an empowering scene that saw her confidently leave the office after giving an ultimatum to fire her or be put back in the game. Will we see Andrea again? You never know. This wouldn’t be the first time years have gone by before one of DaCosta’s characters before popping up again. It happened on Chicago Med when she returned for Season 8 after her Season 6. 

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On how DaCosta felt about the way things shook out, the actress added, “My satisfaction is irrelevant. I have faith in the ultimate divine plan for my career and for my life.” So maybe there is hope she will return to The Lincoln Lawyer in some form. Certainly, it would be welcomed by a lot of the show’s fans.

As for what’s next for DaCosta, she stars in the upcoming Lifetime movie Not My Family: The Monique Smith Story. The “Ripped From the Headlines” project sees her playing Smith, who embarked on a decades-long journey of her true identity after finding out the relatives she knew weren’t actually blood at all. 

Not My Family: The Monique Smith Story premiere, April 12, 8/7c, Lifetime

The Lincoln Lawyer Season 4, TBA, Netflix