Netflix The Lincoln Lawyer (1 Viewer)

[Adam Lenhardt]

Originally developed for CBS, this series adaptation of Michael Connelly's second most famous protagonist is moving forward at Netflix.

It's a different team than "Bosch", with A&E Studios handling the production, but they're taking a similar approach. The first season will be 10 episodes, and adapt the second novel in the series (The Brass Verdict).

David E. Kelley has overseen the development starting with the CBS iteration, and Ted Humphrey ("The Good Wife", "Incorporated") will serve as showrunner.

Mexican actor Manuel Garcia-Rulfo will play Mickey Haller, "an iconoclastic idealist, runs his law practice out of the back seat of his Lincoln Town Car, as he takes on cases big and small across the expansive city of Los Angeles. Manuel is the ideal Mickey Haller, as Haller follows in the footsteps of his attorney father with the showmanship of his Mexican movie star mother. Manuel brings a powerful dynamic and dimension to the role - one that aligns with the books and will give the show the opportunity to celebrate the Latinx heritage and roots of this Los Angeles-based story."

Neve Campbell will play Maggie McPherson, "a passionate Deputy District Attorney who was previously married to Mickey Haller" who is the mother of his daughter Hayley.

 

[Josh Dial]

I burned through the first bunch of Mickey Haller and Harry Bosch books back when I was in law school. They aren't high art or anything, but they were a good way to unwind after school. I'll be checking out the Netflix series.

 

[Matt Hough]

I was very disappointed when CBS passed on the series and am looking forward to it on Netflix. I was a big fan of the movie The Lincoln Lawyer.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

More casting:

• Becki Newton ("Ugly Betty") as Lorna Taylor, Mickey's office manager and second ex-wife. Her condo in West Hollywood is the closest thing the law firm has to an office.
• Jazz Raycole, originally cast for the CBS pilot, will continue in the new iteration as Izzy, "Mickey’s client, a young former addict charged with grand larceny for stealing a necklace to support her habit. Izzy’s clean now – a fact that Mickey can relate to – and he not only gets her acquitted but lets her pay off her bill by working as his driver."
• Angus Sampson, also carried over from the CBS pilot, will play Cisco, "a former biker gang member who now serves as Mickey’s investigator, friend, and when necessary, bodyguard, Cisco is an imposing figure with a keen mind and a deep well of contacts on both sides of the law that help him do his job."

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Premieres Friday on Netflix. Kind of exciting to have two Michael Connelly series running at the same time.

Early reviews are strong. "Bosch" would usually adapt two or three of Connelly's novels each season, with the various storylines intersecting in compelling ways. The first season of "The Lincoln Lawyer" adapts the Connelly novel The Brass Verdict, the second Mickey Haller novel. The first Mickey Haller novel was adapted as the well-done 2011 film starring Matthew McConaughey in the title role. It will be interesting to see how David E. Kelley's distinctive voice will intersect with Connelly's plots and characters.

Too bad they're not on the same streaming service. I'd love to get a crossover between the two half-brothers on screen, especially if Garcia-Rulfo is as good playing Haller as Welliver has been playing Bosch.

More casting:

• Krista Warner as Hayley Haller, Mickey and Maggie's daughter, in her early teens.
• LisaGay Hamilton ("The Practice") as Judge Mary Holder
• Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine ("Heroes", "Treme", "The Chi") as Detective Raymond Griggs
• Jamie McShane ("Bloodline", "Bosch", "The Passage") as Detective Lee Lankford
• Reggie Lee ("Grimm", "All Rise") as Angelo Soto

 

[Matt Hough]

Thanks for this information. The new series had kind of slipped my mind with the terrific number of new shows that have been premiering in the last month or so. Looking forward to seeing this.

 

[Tommy R]

McConaughey was GREAT in the movie. Disappointing he won’t be back, but I’ll give this series a fair look for sure. I loved the movie back in the cinemas and my wife and I revisit the blu ray every few years. It always holds up. At some point I had read that first book. I meant to get around to the rest but just sort of forgot to, lol. Somehow I missed the news that this was being made so I’m glad to see it’s hitting Netflix on Friday!

 

[Matt Hough]

Just watched the first episode, and I can't believe CBS passed on this show. It's right up their procedural alley.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Just watched the first episode, and I can't believe CBS passed on this show. It's right up their procedural alley.

I watched the first episode fairly soon after watching this week's two episodes of "Bosch: Legacy", and it was fascinating to see Michael Connelly's work adapted so differently back to back.

This show definitely feels way more like a network series than either of the "Bosch" shows, but the David E. Kelley of it all might have been too quirky for CBS's procedural mold.

So far, I prefer the Matthew McConaughey movie, which felt a lot more grounded in the semi-seedy underbelly of Los Angeles's criminal court system for (mostly) minor offenses. The premise of Mickey Haller is so quirky to begin with that you almost have to play it completely straight for audiences to accept it as having any basis in reality.

David E. Kelley doesn't really do grounded, though, and even though this show feels written in a way than neither "Bosch" nor the Lincoln Lawyer feature did, I still enjoyed it.

Manuel Garcia-Rulfo looks more like the Mickey Haller described on the page, but I wish he could pull off a more convincing American accent. Yes, Mickey's mother was Mexican, but he still grew up in LA with his gringo father. He should sound American. That issue aside, I like him in the role. He doesn't quite have McConaughey's charisma, but who does?

Neve Campbell is perfectly cast as Maggie, his ex-wife, the mother of his child, and his occasional lover. I believed her as the no-nonsense prosecutor, the fiercely competent mother, and the exasperated ex who is still charmed by him in spite of herself.

I like the idea of Becki Newton as Lorna, I just think the show needs to dial her performance back a little bit. She definitely looks the part, and I believe that she's as smart and competent as Lorna's supposed to be. She just felt a bit too bubbly in the first episode.

I really liked Krista Warner as Mickey's daughter Hayley. Their conversation over dinner on Mickey's back deck was the scene that most reminded me of "Bosch". Much like Bosch with Maddie, Haller doesn't talk down to his daughter.

One major change from The Brass Verdict is that Harry Bosch isn't the detective investigating Jerry Vincent's murder, since A&E doesn't have the rights to the character and it wouldn't line up with the timeline on "Bosch" anyway. The replacement character, Detective Raymond Griggs, felt underdeveloped in the first episode.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I just finished the second episode, which was written by showrunner Ted Humphrey rather than Kelley, and I liked it a lot better. It wasn't as flashy as the pilot, but it trusted the characters and the story more. I'm guessing that Kelley's script was more or less the pilot that he wrote for CBS, and this second episode is more indicative of what the series will be going forward.

The cast felt more settled into their roles here, too.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Gonna be running short on sleep at work tomorrow, but I just finished the first season. I felt it got better as it went along. The various mysteries were satisfying, and came together well. I also appreciated how each step of the main trial played out in its own episode, really taking the audience through the court proceedings in a way that the more episodic legal dramas do not.

Just one dangling thread for future seasons, in the last shot of the season.

 

[Matt Hough]

I'm halfway through now, and I've liked the main plot and subplots, nods to the film (the bikers coming to ask Mickey for help), and the actors are all engaging. Looking forward to the second half of the season.

 

[Matt Hough]

I finished it today and was completely floored by the surprise revelation near the end. Completely caught me off guard and was a satisfying revelation of skullduggery.

 

[Bernard McNair]

We watched the season over the weekend. Much to enjoy over the 10 episodes and some good setups for Season 2 (which I hope gets commissioned).
Really enjoyed the cast and liked the use of LA.
On reflection, I enjoyed this season more than I had expected to and look forward to more Lincoln Lawyer.

 

[John*Wells]

No Josh Lucas a Ted Minton?

 

[Matt Hough]

Very happy to read this afternoon that Netflix announced that a second season of the show has been ordered.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Very happy to read this afternoon that Netflix announced that a second season of the show has been ordered.

Great news! Looks like Ted Humphrey is continuing as one of the showrunners for the second season but Dailyn Rodriguez is replacing David E. Kelley as co-showrunner. I never watched Rodriguez's previous show "Queen of the South", but the reviews for it were strong.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

 

[Matt Hough]

I'm really looking forward to this. I've watched the first season through three times. I think it's a wonderful distillation of the book. I read The Reversal while waiting for this new season to be released knowing it likely won't make it to Netflix since it pairs Mickey Haller with Bosch, an Amazon Prime character series.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I read The Reversal while waiting for this new season to be released knowing it likely won't make it to Netflix since it pairs Mickey Haller with Bosch, an Amazon Prime character series.

I think in this case the issue is less about Netflix versus Prime and more about the fact that A&E holds the television rights to Mickey Haller and related characters. Had it not, I would imagine that Amazon Studios would have snapped up the character shortly after "Bosch" proved to be a big hit for them.

As much as I'd like to see a crossover, I think the grittier, grimier world of the Matthew McConaughey movie would have meshed better with "Bosch" than this take on the character. This version is a little glossier and and a little more stylized.

The McConaughey movie adapted the first Mickey Haller book. The first season of this show adapted the second one, The Brass Verdict. The upcoming second season will adapt the fourth book, The Fifth Witness.