Exclusive: Diane Neal Bails on Law & Order: SVU


Diane Neal by Virginia Sherwood/NBCMan, they're dropping like flies this week on the procedurals. Less than 24 hours after I reported that Gary Dourdan and CSI would be parting ways by season's end, word comes that Diane Neal has given notice at Law & Order: SVU!

A show spokesperson confirmed the actress' departure, saying, "Diane spent five years on SVU and was a tremendous addition to the SVU team. She is looking forward to new opportunities and she will be missed."

Neal, who will make her final appearance in next month's season finale, joined SVU in 2003 as A.D.A. Casey Novak, replacing Stephanie March. She had previously appeared in a Season 3 episodeas a different character, a female rapist by the name of Amelia Chase.

The search for a new A.D.A. is already underway, and, sadly, bringing March back doesn't appear to be an option. Word is Dick Wolf is looking to fill the void with an up-and-comer. No disrespect to Neal, but, for my money, SVU is unlikely to ever find an A.D.A. as arresting as Alex Cabot.

http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-Editors-Blog/Ausiello-Report/Ausiello-Scoop-Diane/800037600

Y-You have got to be kidding me?!? Diane Neal leaves???? Nooooo!!

All I can say is Holy Crap.

No way!!! Shes my favorite. Im ready to cry right now. I cant believe this!

I'm really sad about this! It's like a friend is moving away from me. I wish Diane Neal the best though, however I will miss Casey.

I gotta hand it to them- when Alex left, Casey arrived right after mid season which threw most off but in this case, we have the summer to process this and prepare for a new ADA.

Oh my god! That's really sad. I will miss her too I wish her all the best. But it's really sad

Damn, I didn't expect that. Good luck to her

What?!!!!!


I just spit my drink out... Seriously!!

I-I- c-c can't believe this! WT....

Thanks for the heads up, but I'm just so disappointed right now. So disappointed.

WOW! Didn't see that one coming...although when you look back over seasons 8 and 9 (at least, what we've seen so far), the writing for Casey has been very odd. If it's her choice to leave, it's kind of no wonder...

I hate to say it, but I wonder if they will kill her off. SVU hasn't killed off a major character yet (Alex doesn't count ), and I almost think they need the shake up.

Now, this is just an embarrassment of riches! New SVU tonight, Restoration of Delivia Hope, and now this????!!!!!

Who can I thank? And why an up and comer? CALL VIOLA DAVIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As long as MH and CM stay put thru S10, we don't have to worry about a thing!

HALLELUJAH!


ANDREA

No no no no She can't leave. Who will replace her? She was my favorite ADA.

I didn't either...I wish her luck

Haha, you're having the best week ever and it's only Tuesday.

I have mixed feelings about this. Casey has never been my favorite, sometimes she kicks ass in the courtroom other times I find her annoying. This season I think her character has been kinda rediculous imo, but I don't know how I feel about adding another new character in the mix when Chester Lake has yet to impress me.

On the bright side this news should make for an interesting and exciting finale.

Actually, that is not a bad idea..as far as drama goes. I was nover the biggest fan of Casey but I didn't hate her either. although the last 2 years she began to bug me.

I would have loved to get Alex back...

Please tell me it is a sick joke!
Please don't tell me she's leaving nooooooooooooooooooo!

That's how I feel. Today is a great day! I didn't imagine it could get bad... and then it kinda did. They couldn't have sent this information out tomorrow? Bogus. If Casey's in tonight's episode, that's all I'll be thinking about is... Wow. This is one of her last episodes. Wrong-ness! I hope they find a good actor/ actress. I'm still shocked.

I guess this leaves us with the question, "How are they going to write off her character?". Any suggestions, speculations?

I doubt they'd do that. It'd be kinda ridiculous actaully. I only say this because they already had a close-to-death encounter with the ADA before her, Alex Cabot. I think it would be interesting to kill of a character too... but since she's an ADA and all it would be fake. I know Alex didn't technically "die" but it would still be weird for both ADA's to be killed off. That'd make is sorta seem like the ADA position is highly risky.

Could you imagine what the next ADA would think joining svu? He/she would be like, "What happened to the other ADAs?" Then the squad would be like, "They both died." LOL

She'll be disbarred... She pull a stunt worse than Impulsive or Blinded and her ass will be out of here! Just you watch!


ANDREA

LOL didn't think of that! Maybe casey will jsut get fired..

For the next ADA I would like a character to be a man who is a real obnoxious "love to hate" kind of character, yet who is a BEAST in the courtroom. someone similar to the character type of Robert Romano of ER; he was a brilliant surgeon but a real ahole, yet there was some charisma to him.. I think it woud be fun to see the SVU detectives have to work with a guy they really didn't like, most of us have someone like that in our job right? As long as he kicks ass in the courtroom and puts the bad guys away, it's all good.

Oh my gosh, Andrea. That is a REALLY good prediction. I could totally see that happening. Hopefully, it will be worth it for whatever she would be disbarred for. Countless times has Casey been in hot water so it would only make sense for that to happen.

However, I think that would be really sad because she's done so much good... and it's all thrown away. That's why I say, if she gets disbarred it better be for something HUGE!

I'm tellin ya... they should get us in the writers room... You and Andrea have awesome ideas. I want to see an obnoxious "love to hate" man too... Ooooo. You know what? Maybe this man will have a thing for Olivia.

Is my mind the only one that is exploding with ideas and information right now?!!
I feel like I'm going nutz... worrying about every thing from is Olivia going to be okay tonight... to is Casey going to die or be disbarred... from is Olivia going to get pregnant... to who will be the next ADA... from what will happen in episode 200... to .....

Ya know?! It's all too much.

I think I'm gonna cry...she is like my second favorite character

I totally should be in that writing room! If I were...

Lake will be shipped back to Brooklyn and Munch will take his rightful place next to Fin..FINCH would live!

Alex will be back, maybe as a judge and we would keep Casey

Kurt Moss? Never heard of him.

As cute as Eli is...nope, sorry.

Angry Elliot will be around alot more, ripping his shirt off like the Hulk

Dean and Olivia would be going at it like rabbits

anything else...

Oh yeah, they would work on only SEX CRIMES!



As far as Casey I hope it's not one of those things where in the first eppi of season 10 it's like "hey did you hear about Casey, she moved to robbery." Lame. Lets give her a decent exit.

OMG! We think just alike. I LOVE that list. It would make the show perfect... epecially the "sex crimes" part. And the angry Elliot part... I love Elliot angry.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. My day's really starting to go downhill. They're turning the ADA's job into Defence Against the Dark Arts. The position is cursed. Cursed, I tells ya.

Darn.... I was expecting to see Lake-Novak tandem...

ROFL! I like how that is your only comment on Novak leaving. Not "she was great" or "oh no" but "darn... I was expecting to see Lake-Novak tandem."

That was classic. LOL

Lol, girl, I was the first to post on this thread after Mad posted. I was sad at first. She will be missed, though. I'm going to miss her and Stephanie March

Okay. LOL. I must've missed that.

Cursed! lol

I am so sorry she is leaving. Thank you for this thread

Yes!

YES!


YESS!

YES!!

OH YES!

QUOTE (Queenolivia @ Apr 15 2008, 04:37 PM)

Dean and Olivia would be going at it like rabbits

WAIT!!....."Elliot and Olivia would be going at it like rabbits" MUCH much better

QUOTE (Queenolivia @ Apr 15 2008, 04:37 PM)

anything else...

Oh yeah, they would work on only SEX CRIMES!

Eh. I think a little bit of there personal lives wont hurt

I don't think that they meant they don't like the personal stuff... it's just that hardly any of the things they investigate these days are sex crimes related. It seems like in a lot of episodes it always appears that somebody is raped...then the detectives discover that they weren't... but they investigate anyway because the person had anthrax under their fingernails! LOL. It gets a little ridiculous...

ah gotcha in that case i agree!

*tear* y she was amazing her favorite fraze "get me something to nail that basta*d" *tear* going to miss her




"guess i just suck"
we are going to miss u novak

Thanks for the link, Thats so sad, she's the reason I want to be an ADA

Wow. That's huge. Thanks for the info sweety! I wonder if she gets fired by McCoy? I get the feeling he doesn't particularly like her. I just hope whoever they get is good.

BRING BACK ALEX....even though they won't. I wonder who they'll get?

What the heck...

Lol. I know ay? Came out of nowhere. And so close to the end of SVU. If it goes until season 10, they'll have to find someone for one season. It took Casey a couple to grow on me.....I hope it's someone good.

........................

Wow, THAT came out of left field. I wonder how they will write her out.

I don't know...let the speculation to begin...

You got that right........maybe she can't handle it and leaves.....I've never been a big fan of casey anyway, but it's a shame she leaves.....maybe she enjoyed the time off during the writers strike to much, lol. I wanna know ho's gonna replace her.

I agree with you ... yeah I know unusual...but I wasn't always a big fan of hers either...I mean she was good, but I will always Like Abby the best...

what?! so it is true! awww oh well. i wish her the best in life! i wonder who will replace her....hmmmmm i gotta go think of some people....lol be back later...

I wonder what kind of character they are going to bring in for the ADA. I think it would be interesting to bring in a male but I think they will stick with a woman. If that's the case I want her to be older, tough as nails, and a bulldog in the courtroom. I don't want to deal with someone who can't take the cases like Casey was in the beginning, let her be a vet who doesn't let her emotions cloud her judgement.

I know that they want someone new, but Marlo Thomas could come back as the ADA...that would be nice...not going to happen, but it would be nice...

She would be awesome! I love Marlo Thomas's character but I doubt she would want to cut her salary down to about 25%!

I agree though it should be a more experienced sex crimes attorney (I would like to see how a man would do it but whatever) who is hardcore. I hope it is not someone who was a victim, the child for a victim, the mother of a victim, just someone who is sickened by it simply because it is sickening.

And I don't know why I want someone the detectives don't like at all, lets get angry Elliot out, I miss him. (just for the record I do not think angry or violent men are sexy in real life, but on Elliot...yum.)

Back to Casey, maybe we will have a really hard case in the next couple of episodes and she will just come to the end of her line.