Catch up with Sam Waterston, S. Epatha Merkerson, and more actors from back in the day.

He had previously earned a Golden Globe nomination for his work inThe Great Gatsby(1974).

I thinkLaw & Orderis a show to be proud of being in.

LAW & ORDER

Alice S. Hall/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

And the other things that I might have done were not as exciting,he toldNPRsFresh Airpodcastin 2022.

These things were made possible by … the celebrity that came with doingLaw & Order.

After getting divorced from Barbara Johns in 1975, Waterston married Lynn Louisa Woodruff.

Sam Waterston

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In addition to his son from the previous marriage, Waterston had three children with Woodruff.

However, it wasLaw & Orderthat put her on the map as a serious dramatic actor.

AfterLaw & Orderfirst ended in 2010, the actor seemed excited about starting the next chapter of her career.

S. Epatha Merkerson

Jessica Burstein/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty; Roy Rochlin/Getty

Im taking all the good with me,she told EW.

It was 16 years of employment actors rarely have that experience.

And Ive always been able to say, Im going back toLaw & Order.

Jerry Orbach

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As it turns out, her confidence wasnt misplaced.

However, perhaps her most shocking TV appearance was on a 2019 episode of Henry Louis Gates’Finding Your Roots.

Never one to stand still, Merkerson has stayed busy as an actor.

Chris Noth

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Disney fans may also recognize him as the voice of Lumiere inBeauty and the Beast(1991).

Im getting really busy, but as Damon Wayans says, Mo money, mo money, mo money!

Just two years after joining the cast ofLaw & Order, Orbach was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1994.

Steven Hill

Jessica Burstein/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

He continued to star in the series while quietly undergoing treatments.

The legendary actor appeared in two episodes of the spinoffLaw & Order: Trial by Juryposthumously in 2005.

The character would eventually headline the spinoff seriesLaw & Order: Criminal Intent(20052008).

Jesse L. Martin

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He may have starred in more episodes and spinoffs if he had a better working relationship with Dick Wolf.

I think Ive been a thorn in his side,Noth told EW about the showrunnerin 1995.

Ive been very outspoken about the cast changes and the direction of the show.

Leslie Hendrix

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In 2021,Noth was accused of sexual misconductby multiple women.

Still, Noth is currently slated to star in the upcoming filmsBrooklyn All AmericanandSomeday Sometime.

Interestingly, the actor and showrunnerDick Wolfsaw the character in different ways.

Fred Thompson

NBCU Photo Bank; Ilya S. Savenok/Getty

Steven has more moral authority than anyone else on episodic TV.

He isLaw & Order’smoral keystone."

In response, a somewhat embarrassed Hill said, “I take Dick’s statement as a compliment.

Dann Florek

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I always saw Schiff as a man simply trying to do his job on a case-by-case basis.”

Hill died due to cancer in 2016 at age 94.

I honestly couldnt leave, according to my contract.

Michael Moriarty

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But Dick has always been really cool about that sort of thing.

I had a great time there.

I feel like I went to actor boot camp and Im coming out a colonel.

George Dzundza

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It didnt take Martin long to land another iconic role, though.

In 2014, he joined the cast of the long-running CW superhero dramedyThe Flashas Joe West.

After that series ended in 2023, he began starring in NBCsThe Irrational.

Richard Brooks

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Next up for the actor are roles in the filmsSilent RhythmandSexual Healing.

The latter will see him play Marvin Gaye alongside his formerLaw & Ordercostar, S. Epatha Merkerson.

Previously, she only played small parts in a handful of shows likeAnother WorldandGuiding Light.

Paul Sorvino

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Hendrix continued to act onLaw & Orderuntil the show initially ended in 2010.

Frankly, I hadnt watched [Law & Order] much,Thompson told EW in 2003.

When I have a little time, I usually attempt to catch sports.

Benjamin Bratt

Chris Haston/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty; Taylor Hill/FilmMagic

But it was my wifes favorite show.

Thompson wasnt a rookie actor, though.

He appeared onLaw & Orderand its spinoffs until 2007.

After leaving the show, he returned to politics by campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008.

He didnt succeed, but he later supported John McCain.

Lawbetween 1988 and 1993.

We were at Chelsea Piers.

And nobody was down there then.

It was a lot of fun to go out there and we actually would go hunting for vermin.

We found and we conquered."

He also appeared in films like Disney+sCrater(2023) and shows likeUnder the Dome(2015).

Florek has been married to his wife, Karen, since 1980.

He was also a Tony-winning theatrical actor thanks to his performance inFind Your Way Home.

Regardless of why he departed, Moriarty made his last appearance onLaw & Orderin 1994.

It appears hes retired from acting, though, with his last credit being the 2011 TV movieDanni Lowinkski.

Dzundza has been married to Mary Jo Vermeulen since 1982.

The couple shares three daughters and two grandchildren.

Still, he left his mark as Paul Robinette, the only Black male district attorney in the series.

The rest of his career has proven to be quite impressive.

You may have also spotted him in recent episodes ofChicago P.D.andAbbott Elementary.

Sorvino left the show in 1992, and he had quite the career afterward.

He channeled some of that manic Capulet energy into one of his famously over-the-top performances inRepo!

Offscreen, Sorvino sometimes made more headlines than his onscreen characters.

That son of a b-.

Good for him if he goes, because if not, he has to meet me.

And I will kill the motherf-r. Real simple.

Sorvino died of natural causes in 2022.

He is survived by his wife Dee Dee Benkie and his three children, including actor Michael Sorvino.

He still has posthumous roles in the works, though, including the filmsThe RideandPursuedstarring Molly Ringwald.

He then joinedLaw & Orderin 1995 as homicide detective Rey Curtis, who often had very strident religious views.

He will also reprise his villainous role in season 2 ofPoker Face.

Bratt married former Bond girl Talisa Soto in 2002.

The couple has two children together.