If you’re a fan of the long-running crime drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, you’ve probably noticed that one of the show’s main characters, Captain Donald Cragen, has been missing from the show since the end of the 15th season. So what happened to Captain Cragen?
Captain Cragen was a mainstay of the show since its inception in 1999, and was played by actor Dann Florek. He was the head of the Special Victims Unit, and was a mentor to the detectives under his command. He was a no-nonsense leader who was respected by his team and was always willing to go the extra mile to help them solve cases.
At the end of the 15th season, Cragen was arrested for the murder of a prostitute. He was later cleared of the charges, but the incident had a lasting effect on him. He decided to retire from the police force and move to Florida to start a new life.
Since then, Cragen has been replaced by Captain Olivia Benson, played by Mariska Hargitay. Benson has been a part of the show since the beginning, and has been a strong leader for the SVU team. She has been able to fill the void left by Cragen, and has been a great mentor to the detectives.
So while we may never know what happened to Captain Cragen, we can be sure that the SVU team is in good hands with Captain Benson at the helm. She has been a great leader and has been able to keep the team focused on their mission of protecting victims of crime.
Captain Cragen otherwise known as Donald Cragen is a fictional persona from the television wrongdoing show series, Law and Order. Played by Dann Florek, the person is additionally found in the side project series, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, on NBC. Captain Cragen is a murder captain with the New York Police Office.
He, later on, proceeds to become captain of the division’s Special Victims Unit. Here’s what happened to Captain Cragen.
Captain Cragen Leaves SVU
In 2014, in the fifteenth season’s Inner Issues episode, Captain Cragen resigns from the Special Victims Unit. He requests that Benson have his spot and leaves the division making him in control. Captain Cragen leaves SVU in Amaro’s One-Eighty episode. As seen on the show, before resigning, Captain Cragen begins dating Eileen Switzer.
He makes sense of that his reason for leaving is his girlfriend. Both of them go on an outing all over the planet together. However, even subsequent to resigning, Cragen returns during SVU’s Debased Equity episode. He helps Benson and Rollins to reinvestigate an assault that happened around the time that Cragen ran the 27th region.
Captain Cragen on Law and Order
Captain Cragen otherwise known as Donald Cragen is a recuperating alcoholic, who quit savoring the early 1980s. In the wake of threatening to use a weapon on a taxi driver in a smashed fury, Captain chooses to sober down.
He showed up in the initial three seasons of Law and Order and in the initial 15 seasons of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. Dann Florek’s personality has showed up in 400 episodes in the Law and Order franchise. After the lead character Olivia Benson, Captain Cragen was the second-most seemed character in the franchise.
Law and Order is a legitimate show series made by Dick Wolf. He likewise launched the other series of Law and Order franchise. The whole franchise has broadcasted on NBC. It previously debuted on September 13, 1990, and finished its 20th and last season on May 24, 2010.
Also read: Which are the best cult movies?
Its stars Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Richard Belzer, Michelle Hurd, Dann Florek, Stephanie Walk, George Dzundza, Chris Noth, Richard Creeks, Steven Slopes, S. Epatha Merkerson, Anthony Anderson, Jerry Orbach among numerous others.
NBC Needed To Supplant Florek With a Lady
Dann Florek might have begun his “Law and Order” franchise venture with the first show, however his experience on the fundamental series was brief. Out of 20 seasons, Florek only went on for three before being discounted.
He wasn’t the only actor dismissed from the series at that point, as Richard Streams, who played District Attorney Paul Robinette, was additionally terminated from the show (by means of Untouchable). For what reason did the network need to get rid of the two actors? As per actor S. Epatha Merkerson in an interview for NPR, their flights were because of the network believing that the show should highlight more ladies characters.
“They planned to drop ‘Law and Order,’ I think in its third season because NBC needed ladies on the show,” Merkerson shared with NPR. “So Dick [Wolf] let two of the folks go, and he welcomed on two ladies. That is the way Jill Hennessey and I wound up on the show — because NBC planned to drop it on the off chance that he didn’t acquire skirts. It was really straightforward.”
While Hennessey endured with the series for three seasons as District Attorney Claire Kincaid, Merkerson stayed with the series until its cancellation in 2010. By then, she had established her personality of Lt. Anita Van Buren as a fan-number one for the series. Florek, obviously, proceeded to become one of the most beloved characters in “SVU.”
What Happened To Captain Cragen on ‘SVU’?
Despite the fact that devotees of SVU are used to cast purges, it’s generally miserable when a member of the crew needs to leave.
Captain Don Cragen was SVU’s longest serving captain, and in his long career, he effectively dealt with a group of cops doing a dim and frequently hazardous work. Be that as it may, notwithstanding his numerous long stretches of fruitful help, Captain Cragen’s time at the area reached a conclusion in Episode 21 of Season 16.
Unlike numerous other longtime actors on the show who left because of harsh co-star quarrels or pay issues (taking a gander at you, Christopher Meloni), actor Dann Florek was really ready to resign from his job as Captain Cragen with an end goal to keep the show as realistic as could be expected.
Read also: How incredible is the latest movie of Brad pitt?
What many fans may not know is that the NYPD has a mandatory retirement age of 63 years of age, according to its true pension rules encompassing retirement.
While SVU is known to drive the limits of their storylines that tip into acting, it takes extraordinary endeavors to adhere to reality when it comes to the procedural parts of the show. So when actor Dann Florek turned 62 of every 2013, fictional personality Don Cragen likewise needed to make his retirement arrangements.
As then-showrunner Warren Leight said, “In reality, which we make a good attempt to recreate, NYPD has mandatory retirement before your 63rd birthday … The reason NYPD does it is because you can’t have 65-year-old folks pursuing folks. It is a firm rule.”
This was likewise the reason that much-cherished investigator Crunch (Richard Belzer) left the show only a couple of months before the captain, albeit the show made a point to scatter their flights so fans weren’t too stunned by the changes.
Likewise, because fans needed to manage Christopher Meloni‘s rather sudden takeoff from the show, Warren needed to ensure “to have somewhat more emotional continuity,” when it came to the person’s flight.
Also read: Why is it had to be you movie so exclusive?
“Clearly, the Meloni exit was not handled skillfully by Chris or NBC or Dick [Wolf],” Warren said, so expressing goodbye to Cragen and Crunch was considerably more emotional.
Season 22 of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit debuts Nov. 12 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below and do not forget to visit trendingnow.ggez.bid for more mind-boggling updates.
