Samantha Maroun (Odelya Halevi) steps up in the Thursday, April 23, episode of Law & Order, and she does so against her mentor, Abigail Donahue (Alanna Ubach) for a case that certainly has some parallels to their relationship. TV Insider spoke with Halevi about this episode, and she explained why that ending is “bittersweet.” Warning: Spoilers for Law & Order Season 25 Episode 18 ahead!
Kelli Williams guest stars as Ann Merrick, the boss and mentor of the victim, a reporter found dead backstage at a pageant. As is revealed during the investigation, she killed the victim after learning that not only would her contract not be renewed, but the other woman would be getting her job. Her lawyer is Abigail, whose defense is extreme emotional distress. She also wants Maroun to plead out, manslaughter, with a sentence of five to 25 years, instead of murder in the second degree. Maroun is first chair on this case; Nolan’s (Hugh Dancy) out recovering from having his appendix removed.
But Maroun refuses, especially after finding that Ann has a history of threatening vengeance when her mentees do better than she does; she’s ready to call one such witness. Abigail tries to convincer to plead out, even claiming that she could move case law forward since, as she sees it, men successfully use EED for crimes of anger and rage but women can’t. She even tells Maroun that she “owes” her for getting her her current job. Maroun acknowledges that she helped her, but when it comes time to call her next witness in court, she proceeds as planned. Ann is found guilty of murder in the second degree, and when Maroun tries to talk to Abigail after, her (former?) mentor says they’re done and walks away. Baxter tells Maroun she did a great job.
Below, Odelya Halevi breaks down this episode and teases what’s ahead for Maroun, including in the finale.
How is Sam feeling at the end? Because she did the right thing, but then Abigail brushes her off and walks away. So it all has to be wrapped all together for her, right?
Odelya Halevi: It’s bittersweet. It’s like finding out that a longtime friendship, relationship maybe wasn’t real, maybe it was agenda-driven, and it’s heartbreaking. It’s really heartbreaking. Even though she knows it’s the right thing to do, it is sad. But also she’s OK with that because it had to happen. Some people come into your life for a reason and they stay there for a little bit, and then they have to leave for you to grow and move on and be better. And I feel like Baxter would be the new type of mentor.
Will Hart/NBC
I was going to bring that up because as much as Sam knew she did the right thing, did she also need someone — and in this case, it is Baxter — to tell her she did a great job because she might not be feeling in the right place to tell herself that?
Absolutely. I always think that Maroon, it doesn’t matter how well she does. She’s always going to beat herself up and thrive for greatness. And it really does help that someone like Baxter, who is at his position as a DA, tells her that she did a good job. It’s everything you want to hear when you work really hard, for your boss to be proud of you.
Because you’re always your toughest critic.
And this is something we do in life. Always that imposter syndrome. “I could have done better. I could have made the right choice and not lose that relationship,” but no, it is what it is and you have to let go.
How does Sam feel about Abigail even asking her to let her plead this out?
When we were shooting the scene, there were a few things that I felt. There was a moment of … First of all, it was shock. It was sadness. “Are you really going to do that? Can I ever trust you as a friend ever again? What else are you going to ask for me? Do you actually care about me?” And there’s also the thought of like, “Huh, she’s desperate. I’m actually good. I’m actually doing a good job. She trained me, yes, she helped me, but she created a monster, too.” That. It’s like, ”I’m winning. I did a good job.”
And I like the conversation that Sam has with Baxter after that and as he points out, no mentor should ask you to repay a debt like Abby does. That was a great moment, too, for those two.
Yeah. Yeah. And then the thought of all these years, I thought I could trust that person. And then looking at Baxter going, “This should be my mentor.”
The case itself was complicated as it was but facing off against her mentor and how that all went down was harder on Sam, right?
Yes, and the fact that it mirrored the relationship with the defendant and the victim, it made it even more complicated with anything that had to do with cross-examination. She had to be really emotionally intelligent to try to separate the two and not let her personal feelings get involved while she was going through her personal journey with Abby.
Because Abby is so tied into everything professional for Sam, at least up to this point, how is Sam doing going forward when it comes to work? Is she figuring out what to disregard that she learned from Abby?
I think what she’s choosing to disregard is because there’s that moment that where Maroun says, “Well, you never taught me that one,” referring to, “Why are you playing dirty? You never taught me to play dirty,” something like that. And then she’s like, “Well, I didn’t give you everything.” And that to me, to Maroun, it’s like, “I will never be that. I will never become that. I don’t have to step on people’s backs to succeed. I can go to bed, sleep well at night knowing that I’m doing my job and I’m doing it correctly and I’m winning even without hurting other people.” So I think that’s something that she learned to never take from her.
And we are in an industry that people do that in my industry. I’ve seen that happen over and over and over again. And I remember I was telling myself, I will never be that person. And so I remember when we were shooting that scene, I was like, “Oh God, I’ve been there. I’ve been there. And this is something I will never want to take moving forward.”
So now moving forward, is it kind of just back to business as usual for Sam?
Moving on to the next case.
What can you say about when Nolan’s back and are we going to see them talking about this on screen?
I don’t think we’re going to see them talking about it on screen this season. We may explore that next season, but so far, no.
Is he back in the next episode?
He is back in the next episode, yeah.
What can you preview about the finale?
Well, the ending of the finale really surprised me. I don’t think we’ve done anything like that in the whole five seasons that I’ve been a part of. And so I can’t tell you what it is, but the verdict is definitely not what we would expect it to be.
Oh, interesting. Because I was going to say, is Sam part of that scene, but if you’re saying it’s about the verdict, in court…
It’s about a lot of things.
What can you tease about where the finale leaves Sam?
I would say it’s more about her relationship with Nolan in terms of her and Nolan working together to win this case, things that they have learned to overcome and the trust between the two of them.
So are we going to see them in conflict or …?
That’s the thing. It’s probably the first time, not the first time, but one of the only times where there’s no conflict there. They are a team.
What do you want to explore with Sam going forward?
I want more of these opportunities to play first chair. I had so much fun. I feel like just like Maroun was waiting for that opportunity. I was waiting for that opportunity to explore more of that as an actor. And yeah, I hope for more opportunities like this one.
I think what I liked most about this episode is that we see that she is ready for that. There was never any question of that.
Yeah, I agree. And this is the first time because before it was kind of like Nolan had to support her, be there, nod. And then this time she just was ready and she just wanted to hear, “Hey, take the case.” And it was really unexpected that Baxter was going to just give it to her.
Do you think in a way she needed Nolan to not be around for this case?
Yes, yes. I mean, I just feel like, in life when you’re given a responsibility, but there’s just people around — I can only speak for myself. If I’m given a responsibility and absolutely no one will be there to help me, I will do my best. I will always end up doing the best work, but when I have someone to lean on, sort of like a plan B, somewhere to escape, then it’s not going to be 100%. So she’s forced to do the best job.
And she did.
And she did. And there’s no one there to doubt her because a lot of the times, Nolan does doubt her challenges, her opinions, and her way of thinking.
Law & Order, Thursdays, 8/7c, NBC
More Headlines:
- ‘Hacks’ Creator Lucia Aniello Breaks Down Her Onscreen Debut as Meredith in Season 5
- ‘Hacks’ Guest Star Christopher Briney on Romancing Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance for Episode 3
- ‘Law & Order’: Odelya Halevi Breaks Down ‘Bittersweet’ Ending With Maroun’s Mentor & Teases Shocking Finale
- ‘Jeopardy!’ Fans React After ‘Spectacular’ Game: Did Jamie Ding Win?
- How Jamie Ding Plans to Spend His ‘Jeopardy!’ Earnings
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.