WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for The Lincoln Lawyer season 3 & The Law of Innocence book, on which season 4 is seemingly based!The book story underliningThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 4 has been confirmed after Mickey’s (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) latest twist, but adapting that novel has an added challenge connected to Prime Video’sBoschseries.The Lincoln Lawyer’s charactersand stories are based on Michael Connelly’s Mickey Haller novel series, following the titular defense attorney, his personal life, legal team’s dynamics, and grueling cases that he takes on. However,The Lincoln Lawyerwas given a notable problem to overcome from the offset, asthe novels are connected to Connelly’s Harry Bosch book series, which Prime Video adapted into a show in 2014.
Though Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller are half-brothers in both book series, neither character has appeared in the TV show adaptation of the other. Therefore,Netflix’sThe Lincoln Lawyercan’t directly adapt Mickey’s subplots with Harry, and vice versaon Prime Video’sBosch. Both shows have been able to skillfully avoid including the other brother so far, with Mickey being written as an only child inThe Lincoln Lawyer. However,The Lincoln Lawyerseason 4now has a bigger challenge in adapting Michael Connelly’sThe Law of Innocencenovel, as Harry’s book role has an increased emotional presence.
Harry Bosch Plays A Huge Role In The Book That The Lincoln Lawyer Season 4 Is Adapting
Harry Bosch Joins Mickey’s Defense Team In The Law Of Innocence Book
At the veryend ofThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 3, Mickey Haller is pulled over by the police and opens his trunk to find Sam Scales’ body there. Clearly, Mickey wasn’t the one who killed his client, and is being framed for Sam’s murder by some unknown enemy. That conflict is at the center ofMichael Connelly’sThe Law of Innocencebook, indicating that this novel will be the primary inspiration forThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 4’s story.
With Mickey being accused of Sam’s murder, this becomes his most personal and daunting case yet, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise thathis half-brother Harry Bosch plays a sizable role inThe Law of Innocence’s conflicts. Not only does Harry have an increased presence inThe Law of Innocence, but it also sees greater input from Mickey’s ex-wife Maggie McPherson compared toThe Gods of Guilt. ConsideringNeve Campbell was only in two episodes ofThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 3,the upcoming outing may have to adjust the book story to deal with both Maggie and Harry’s absences.
Since Harry and Mickey are brothers, his role in the book adds a more emotionally charged personal and familial layer to the case.
InThe Law of Innocence,Harry Bosch becomes more closely involved in Mickey’s defense as the legal team’s co-investigator.The Lincoln Lawyer’s character “Cisco” is the one who tries to convince the rest of the team to bring Harry into the fold as the co-investigator in the novel, so the detective plays an integral role in divulging the truth about who framed Mickey. Additionally, since Harry and Mickey are brothers, his role in the book adds a more emotionally charged personal and familial layer to the case.
Bosch Spinoff & Lincoln Lawyer Connection Explained
The Lincoln Lawyer & Bosch: Legacy are both based on Michael Connelly novels. Are his characters as connected in the shows as they are in the books?
With Harry Bosch being unable to appear inThe Lincoln Lawyer, the show will have to conceive a compelling way to replace his novel role. Whether that means getting Neve Campbell in more episodes to help Mickey’s case, involving Hayley more to replace Harry’s familial connection, or giving Cisco far more to do as the sole investigator,Harry’s absence creates a more difficult challenge for adaptingThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 4’s emotional murder case.
The Lincoln Lawyer & Bosch Shows' Character Rights Issues Explained
Netflix Owns Mickey Haller & Amazon Owns Harry Bosch
Harry Bosch can’t appear inThe Lincoln Lawyerbecause the rights to that character are owned by Amazon, whereas Mickey Haller can’t appear inBoschor its spinoff showsbecause the rights to that character are held by Netflix. If Netflix was the studio behind bothBoschandThe Lincoln Lawyer, there wouldn’t be a big problem in having the two shows crossover. In order for Harry Bosch to appear inThe Lincoln Lawyer, Amazon would have to reach a deal with Netflix to license the character, similar to how Sony leases out rights for Spider-Man/Peter Parker to Disney.
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The Lincoln Lawyer(2022-Present)
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However, consideringThe Lincoln Lawyerhas already gone three seasons without introducing Harry Bosch and has yet to directly mention any of Mickey’s siblings, it seemsunlikely that the two characters will get a TV crossover. Netflix has successfully written around Harry’s involvement in the previously-adapted Mickey Haller books so far, andThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 4 isn’t apt to be any different.
What The Lincoln Lawyer’s Showrunner Has Said About Season 4’s Bosch Absence
The Lincoln Lawyer Has A Strategy To Replace Bosch’s Role
Following season 3 finale’s twist ending and set-up for season 4’s take onThe Law of Innocence, co-showrunner Ted Humphrey addressedhowThe Lincoln Lawyerintends to deal with Harry Bosch’s absence. According to Humphrey,Bosch’s appearance is “not a possibility,”noting that if the opportunity ever arises to introduce the character, they’d have to deal with the issue to “backfill the relationship between [Mickey and Harry].”
Harry Bosch has been portrayed by Titus Welliver since 2014 in Amazon’s TV show adaptations. In the novels, Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller are half-brothers who share the same father, Mickey Haller, Sr.
Rather than get rid of Harry’s role altogether, itappearsThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 4 will introduce a new character to replace his story contributions. Humphrey compared their plan for Bosch to the role ofNeil Bishop inThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 3, an original character for the show who replaced Detective Lankford’s (played by Jamie McShane inThe Lincoln Lawyerseason 1) return in the book. So far,The Lincoln Lawyerseemingly plans to deal withBosch’s titular detective by repeating their past strategy of creating new characters and potentially drawing from other novels’ stories.
The Lincoln Lawyer
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The Lincoln Lawyer: This legal drama follows Mickey Haller, a Los Angeles defense attorney known for operating from his Lincoln Town Car, as he revives his career after an accident by taking on a high-profile murder case. The series explores challenges within the justice system and Haller’s pursuit of truth.
Bosch
Bosch is a crime drama series created by Eric Ellis Overmyer that ran for seven seasons on Prime Video between 2014 and 2021. The series centers on Harry Bosch, an LAPD homicide detective that is juggling the case of a 13-year-old murder victim while standing trial after murdering a serial killer. After season 7 Bosch was followed by Bosch: Legacy in 2022.
